


Simon Snow and the Six Targets

by the_lost_punchline



Category: Carry On - Rainbow Rowell
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, College, Falling In Love, Friendship, M/M, Pining, Plot, Slow Build, University
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-25
Updated: 2016-11-03
Packaged: 2018-07-26 13:33:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 25,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7575889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_lost_punchline/pseuds/the_lost_punchline
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Simon Snow has been on the news a lot.<br/>As a Criminal Justice major, his professor Davy believes that Simon is destined for a great career as a FBI agent and his heroics in shoot outs and bank robberies has certainly earned him a reputation among campus as the "Golden Hero".  But it's his last year in college and Agatha's dumped him and Penny's treating him like he's porcelain. To make matters worse, Baz is his roommate and Simon is sure he's up to something this time. When a string of homicides plague Simon's city, will he be able to play the part and save the day before anyone else gets hurt?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Simon

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys. I've been reading fanfics for a while but I've never had the courage to write any until now. The lovely characters I'm borrowing of course belong to Rainbow Rowell. I am forever in her debt for creating such amazing people. Please be kind and I hope you enjoy.

1

**Simon**

     I think Penny’s mom is happy that I’m finally leaving.

     Don’t get me wrong, Penny’s mom really likes me, but it's obvious that she’s tired of following me around to make sure I don’t break anything. She treats me like I’m a Great Dane and honestly, it’s a bit of relief to go back.

     Penny’s relieved too, I think she’s been waiting all summer for the moment I break something really important which I’d get angry about if it weren’t based off reason. But I can’t help it, sometimes it just feels  _ right _ to run into tables and walls when I’m starting to feel my emotions get out of control and I forget to check what’s  _ on _ the tables or hanging  _ on _ the walls.

     Agatha always used to complain about how I don’t think enough.

     I think I think  _ too _ much.

     It’s why I try hard not to think, thinking about things is pointless because it just leads to wanting things and I’m not allowed to want things.

     Growing up in the orphanage taught me that, but I guess things are different now that I’m a senior in college. Now if I want something, I’m supposed to work for it whereas when I was a kid I had to work to stay sane.

     “Ready, Simon?” Penny asks. She’s hauling a box full of books and it’s labelled “Box 1 of 12” so I’m not sure how we’re supposed to fit in her car when there’s twelve boxes of just her books.

     “Yep.” I say and bend down to pick up my own box. We go back and forth between the house and her car for a while until there’s no boxes left and I swear Penny used magic because there’s just enough room in her car for everything and two passengers.

     “Penny,” I say shutting her trunk.

     “Hm?” She responds stepping back to admire our work.

     “You would tell me if you were a witch, right?” I ask half joking. Penny is so smart and so  _ good _ that I wouldn’t be surprised if she was a magical being.

     “Simon, please. This was pure talent.” She says waving at the car and the outlines of boxes through the windows.

     She hugs her parents goodbye and Penny’s mom surprises me by squeezing me goodbye. Her dad finally comes out of the house in clothes that he’s probably been wearing for days now since he always locks himself up in his laboratory. He kisses Penny’s forehead and slaps me on the back.

     “You two stay  _ safe _ .” He chuckles. “No more shootouts or bank robberies, okay?”

     Penny groans, “Dad, the bank robbery wasn’t even our fault. We just happened to be there at the wrong time.”

     Penny’s mom gives her a sharp look and Penny backtracks, “But we’ll be careful.”

     “Don’t be heroes this year, okay? Just be normal college kids. This  _ is _ your last year.” Penny’s mom says.

     “Not for me...I still have to go through medical school.” Penny mumbles.

     And then we step into Penny’s car and the engine rumbles to life. I hear Penny give a sigh of relief and I can only watch as Penny’s parents shrink in the distance.

     Maybe, just maybe, I won’t have to put Penny in danger this year.


	2. Penny

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unnecessary Explanation Time:  
> I started this yesterday and I already have the first 8 chapters of it written and I was going to pace myself, you know? A chapter a day kind of thing, but I'm too excited to share this with you guys so I'm just going to go ahead and post the first 8 chapters and then post a chapter each day.
> 
> I really hope you guys dig it.

2

**PENNY**

     Simon’s quiet. Too quiet.

     When we roll to a stop at a red light, I glance at him just once to see how he’s doing and it’s everything I have in me to not turn the car around and just keep driving. Simon likes to think he can keep how tired he really is from me, but I can read him like any of the books in this car.

     I can’t help but think this is Professor Davy’s fault.

     If he didn’t push Simon so damn hard, if he didn’t expect so much from someone still so young, maybe some of the worry in Simon’s eyes would go away.

     Maybe Simon would smile a little more.

     Simon hasn’t really smiled since the middle of junior year.

     That was when Agatha and Simon really started to fight. When Agatha stopped pretending Simon’s heroics didn’t get on her nerves and Simon stopped pretending he cared whether or not he was annoying his girlfriend.

     They were so bad as a couple, it took a lot of self control to not tell them everyday how badly this was going to end. Now, I’m wondering if I should have.

     But Simon hasn’t gotten that memo yet, because he’s convinced that Agatha and him are just having a spat and that a little distance is all they need before they can get back together.

_      Honestly _ , sometimes I wonder what goes on in that head of his.

     We’re halfway to the campus and he still hasn’t said a word. We roll up to another stoplight when Simon clears his throat.

     “I...uh...erm...Penny?” He stammers.

     Simon always has a way with words. But I think it’s part of his charm.

     “Yeah, Simon?” I say glancing at him again. He fidgets in his seat.

     “I was...uh...thinking about what your mom said and she’s uh right, you know.”

     “That we should stay out of trouble?” I reply.

     It’s not like we actively seek out trouble. Trouble just has a way of finding Simon and pulling him in. Which means it has a way of pulling me in too.

     “Y-yeah.” He mumbles.

     There’s a lot of silence for a couple of miles until I’m pulling up to the nearest parking lot to Simon’s dorm.

     “Wait, why are we here?” Simon asks blinking rapidly. I think he thinks if he blinks enough the scenery will change.

     “So we can get you set up for your dorm?” I say innocently.

     Simon just stares at me.

     Finally, he says, “But...I thought I was helping you move into your apartment.”

     I feign surprise.

     “Oh.”

     Simon’s eyes narrow. “Penny, you have like a million boxes and I have like two. It makes sense that I would help you.”

     I shrug and pull the keys out of the ignition.

     “Well...we’re here now.”

     Because Agatha is at our apartment right now and she asked that I don’t bring Simon over while she’s there.

     Also...I don’t think it would be a good thing for Simon to be around her while he’s still pining.


	3. Simon

3

**Simon**

     Penny thinks she’s being sly.

     I know that she probably wants to keep me away from Agatha. And I guess she’s right in doing so. But...I’ve never wanted anything in my life like I’ve wanted Agatha and so I feel like this is something I should fight for...right?

     But I just shrug and follow Penny out of the car. 

     This was all Baz’s fault anyways.

     If Baz hadn’t been so  _ suspicious _ I wouldn’t have had to follow him into the bank and Penny and Agatha wouldn’t have been in the middle of a bloody bank robbery.

     Agatha accused me of caring about Baz more than her safety.

     Penny accused me of overestimating Baz.

     But how could I when he’s always plotting? Baz is from the Grimm-Pitch family, which means he’s  _ made _ of lies and secrets and whatever else politicians are. And he had been acting weird all week leading up to the bank incident, I had to know what he was up to.

     Turns out he was just depositing some important family heirloom that caught the attention of some jewel thieves.

     And then we were hostages for awhile.

     “Oh, bloody  _ bravo _ , Simon, really. If I had wanted to die young, I would have just gotten into a car you were driving.” Agatha seethed.

     “Shut up!” The robber said pointing his gun in Agatha’s direction. She turned white as a sheet.

     “This is  _ not _ my fault. It’s Baz’s!” I hissed.

     Baz sneered.

     “Please, explain to me how this is  _ my _ fault. And without the bluster,  _ if you can manage _ .”

     “I said,” The robber pointed his gun into the air and shot off two warning shots before pointing it at Baz, “ _ shut up _ .”

     I swear to God, that Baz gets more composed the more danger a situation has.

     We were herded into a room and locked in after that. Baz was pulled aside because they needed him for some security code or something. One of the robbers stood guard just outside with a gun.

     “Simon.” Penny whispered, eyes glued to the man outside. “I’m going to scream and you have to knock that man out when he comes running in, okay?”

     Agatha’s eyes widened and she shook her head furiously.

     “No. No screaming and no saving the day. Do you hear me? We are going to sit here like good little hostages so we don’t get shot and then  _ die _ .”

     “What am I supposed to use to knock him out?” I whispered back.

     “Simon,  _ no _ .” Agatha fumed.

     “Didn’t you take that self defense course as your PE credit?” Penny asked angling her body away from me so that when the man ran in, his back was to me.

     “Penny, are you sure?”

     It was too late. Penny was already screaming.

     The door burst open and the gunman made a direct line towards Penny. She had moved just enough so that he had his back completely facing me. Agatha was praying and I knew she’d never forgive me for this.

     “Shut up, bitch.” He raised the butt of his gun to hit Penny and that was when I lunged forward and tackled him to the ground.

     “Son of a—”

     I brought my fist down twice before he slumped over.

     Penny jumped up and walked over to the body. She knelt and patted him down in search of any weapons he had. She came up with two guns and handed one to me.

     “I’m not sure what to do after this.” I admitted.

     Penny stuffed her hand in the man’s pocket and took out his phone. She dialled 911.

     “Hello? Yes, I’d like to report a bank robbery at the Hilton’s. My friends and I are stuck in a tiny room in the back.”

     She hung up after giving out details and then faced me.

     “Baz is with those guys.” I said because as much as I hated the guy, he didn’t deserve that.

     She nodded and then faced the room.

     “Stay here and lock the door after us. The police are on their way. Oh, and watch him.”

     She pointed at the man.

     “Penny...you can’t come.”

     “Nonsense.” She dismissed. “Agatha, you coming?”

     “Are you  _ insane _ ?” Agatha asked. “I just had a gun pointed at me, I’m not looking forward to having it happen again.”

     Penny just shrugged and peered out the door.

     “It’s safe.”

     “Penny, you shouldn’t come.”

     “Why? Because I’m not a Criminal Justice major?” She teased.

     “Because it’s dangerous.” I hissed.

     “Exactly!” She said, eyes shining bright.

     “You have the  _ worst _ survival instincts.”

     “Simon, that is the third wall you’ve run into.” Penny says, her mouth tight with worry.

     My head throbs and I look around to find that we’re already in the hallway of my dorm. We’re each carrying a box and Penny keeps giving me sideways glances.

     “Sorry.” I say. I can feel my ears turn pink.

     “Are you okay?” She asks softly.

     “Don’t make a scene.” I whisper.


	4. Simon

4

**Simon**

     I don’t even know why I’m surprised anymore. It’s just my luck really.

     Because standing in front of me with a sneer on his face and fury in his deep-water grey eyes is Tyrannus Basilton Grimm-Pitch.

     Penny bumps into my back when I stop mid stride.

     “Simon! Why did you—oh.” Penny says peeking over my shoulder.

     “Bunce.” Baz says slowly. When he talks like this (which is pretty much the only way I’ve ever heard him speak) it’s like his voice is a sharpened blade ready for the kill.

     “Baz.” She says coolly.

     “What are you doing in my room? I suppose you think I’m plotting your demise?” Baz raises an eyebrow. “Or perhaps you’ve come to accuse me of having tried to kill you?”

     “You  _ did _ try to kill me, Baz!” I snap because being around him is like having a fucking siren blast in your ears.

     He rolls his eyes.

     “You  _ pushed _ me down the  _ stairs _ .” I seethe.

     “If I recall correctly, you’re the one who threw the first punch. I was merely returning the favor. You  _ happened _ to be standing near a staircase.”

     I push past him and drop my things on the bed opposite to his. Penny follows after me and sets down the box she’s holding next to mine.

     “What do you think you’re doing?” Baz snaps turning around to face me. His face is twisted up and his jaw is moving. I think he’s grinding his teeth. I didn’t know people actually did that.

     “This is my room.” I say because there’s nothing else to say.

     He scowls, “This is just my bloody luck. I have to endure more than my fair share of apple-cheeked protagonism.”

     Penny coughs into the nook of her elbow but I can clearly see she’s hiding a smile.

     Traitor.

     My face turns red and I mumble, “That’s hardly true.”

     “Just look at you.” Baz groans. “How is this even possible? You’re a senior. Aren’t you supposed to be living with Bunce in some hobbit hole?”

     Penny’s eyebrows immediately furrow together and her mouth gets tight. I growl because he’s always making fun of my height.

     “My scholarship requires that I stay in the dorms. And you’re one to talk.”

     “I’m an RA.” He hisses.

     “What’s your problem?” I ask.

     “You! Jesus Christ, it will always be you.” Baz stomps out the door and slams it shut.


	5. Baz

****

5

**Baz**

     The universe has it out to get me.

     I just know it.

     Why else would it assign me Simon bloody Snow as a roommate?

     It’s not as if my life is already pathetic enough as it is, no, because the universe had to throw Snow in too just to fuck with me even more. Just to torment me and push me to the edge where his gloriously tanned face would be waiting to see if I slip up.

     I know I could’ve just quietly walked out of the room but damn it all, I want an ostentatious display of how pissed I am right now.

     Because it’s not enough to have the boy I love be in love with someone else, no, he has to hate me and live in the same room as me too.

     I’m dangerously close to falling into a pit of self pity that’ll last embarrassingly long so I take three deep breaths. By the time I make it downstairs into the crowds of people coming back from holiday, I’m back to cool composure.

     I stop and look around.

     I have no clue where I’m going.

     But, damn it, I’m not going back. Not until Bunce is gone at least.

     I spot the music building looming in the distance and I feel myself relax. I change directions and soon enough I’m in the cool interior.

     The music building is beautiful. It has vaulted ceilings and marbled floors. The windows are stained glass murals and the colors glitter off the white marble.

     I find the classroom my mother always played in when she was the Dean here and shut the door behind me. The classroom is facing away from the sun so everything is cloaked in darker colors than the hallway. It takes awhile for my eyes to adjust.

     I left my violin in its case in my room, but I know there’s always a spare one in here. It’s communal but it’ll have to do for now.

     I walk past the piano with particular care to avoid looking at it. I open the cabinet and sure enough there’s the violin in a little cubby. I pull out the case and frown at the dust that’s collected on top.

     The violin is in dreadful condition.

     The wood is cracked and worn, the strings are old and out of tune, and the bow needs tightening but there’s still a slab of rosin in the case and I immediately get to work on tuning the strings.

     (I don’t think Snow has ever heard me play.)

     I shake my head, Snow is the very thing I’m trying _not_ to think about.

     I start to play.

     It’s a long, mournful tune but it’s perfect for what I’m feeling. I shut my eyes because I don’t need them right now and because sometimes it's easier to submit to my feelings when I can pretend I don’t exist.


	6. Simon

6

**Simon**

     After Baz leaves, Penny helps me put away my things.

     It doesn’t take long.

     I’m putting away my generic brand soap when Penny pops her head into the bathroom. She smiles at me and then disappears.

     I chuckle and follow her out.

     “What’s up?” I ask dropping onto my bed. Penny flops onto Baz’s bed and I raise an eyebrow. “Baz is going to kill you.”

     “Like he can.” Penny says and smiles again. It’s infectious and I can’t help but smile back.

     “Why are you so smiley all of a sudden?” I ask. The room is small enough that I can nudge her thigh with my toe if I stretch.

     “Because, Simon. This year will be good.” She says.

     “How? I’m rooming with Baz.” I say thinking about how he’s probably already plotting against me with his dramatic widow’s peak and permanent sneer.

     Penny just rolls her eyes. “Big picture, Simon. Think big picture.” She spreads her hands out in front of her and I can only stare at her.

     “And I’ve been dumped.” I add frowning.

     “Simon.” Penny groans and then stands up. She walks over and nudges me to make room for her. I relent and she sidles up to my side and even though the bed's too small for this, I’m happy.

     I turn to my side to face her and she does the same.

     “Yeah?” I ask.

     “This year is the last year.”

     “Not for you.” I say because as much as Penny complains about having to go to school the next few years without me, she and I both know she wouldn’t stop until she gets her Ph.D. It’s practically required in her family.

     “It’s the last year before we’re finally able to move away and find our own little place.” Penny corrects.

     Penny thinks we’re moving in together after we graduate.

     I think she’s going to move in with her boyfriend.

     Not that I don’t want to live together, it’s just...I don’t want to get my hopes up.

     “Seriously.” She says after she sees my face. “You and me, Simon. I’ll get into grad school, we’ll move across the country where nobody’s ever heard of Simon Snow and Penelope Bunce, and we’ll live happily ever after with crippling student debt.”

     I laugh at that because I can believe the crippling debt part.

     But I guess you have to believe in a happy ending to even have a chance at it, right?

     So I just listen to her talk about how we’ll live together and slowly nod off to sleep.


	7. Baz

7

**Baz**

     Bunce is leaving when I walk down the hallway to my room.

     She closes the door and stops when she sees me. I raise an eyebrow and she alternates between opening and closing her mouth.

     “I didn’t know you could bluster too. Snow must be rubbing off on you.” I sneer. It’s kind of what I do.

     She just rolls her eyes.

     “What are you waiting for Bunce? Either you’re going to say something or you’re going to leave.”

     She colors a bit and then her face changes. It’s subtle enough that I would have missed it if it weren’t for the fact that I know her nearly as well as I know Snow. And it’s not because we’re friends. Every time Snow tails me, he drags Bunce along.

     There’s steel in her jaw now.

     “Simon is your roommate now,” She says and I groan to cut her off.

     “Yes, please  _ don’t _ remind me.”

     Her eyes narrow and she continues, “Don’t you dare hurt him. Because if you do, I will smother you in your sleep.”

     She takes a step forward and I have to look down to meet her gaze. I fight the urge to scoff. Hurt Simon? I would never hurt Simon. (Granted, I did punch him down a flight of stairs, but he made the first move.) But Bunce is glaring me down and I can appreciate that she’s looking out for him.

     “You’ve got a flare for the dramatics, Bunce.” I say. She takes a step back and crosses her arms. Her skirt is still hitched up and plenty of thigh is showing, but it’s not really my thing. I do glance at it and smirk though, because I know she’d be mortified if she walked back to her car like that.

     She glances down and blushes.

     She pats down the skirt and then meets my eyes.

     “Says the one who slammed the door and stomped their way out of the building.”

     “Go home, Bunce.” I sigh and step back to allow her to pass. She glances back at me with an analyzing look and then leaves.

     I wait until she turns the corner before swiping my room key.

     If I had seen Bunce exit Simon’s room with her skirt hitched up like that and her hair ruffled two years ago, I would have gone into a jealous fit and cursed them both. But it didn’t take me long to realize that there’s nothing between the two aside from platonic love. The two are practically brother and sister without all the quibbling. It does amuse me, however, when Agatha sees them because she apparently hasn’t gotten the memo.

     One time Simon lent Penny his jacket because she forgot hers and Agatha went positively mad.

     I bite my lip at the memory because I’m a villain and villains don’t smile.

     The lights are off and I flip them on to find Snow pressed against the wall, his body curled in on itself and his eyes shut.

     I breathe a sigh of relief and try to gather my pajamas as quietly as possible. I shut off the lights and change in the dark. When I slip under the covers, I allow myself to face him and count all the moles I can see. His shaggy curls are all over his face and my fingers twitch because I’d like to brush them back just once. Simon’s mouth is slightly opened and I swear he was put on this planet just to torture me.

     Simon shivers just once but that’s enough to send me on my feet.

     Before I can stop myself, I pull the covers over his shoulders. He sighs and settles down. I’m staring and I know I should get the hell away before Simon wakes up and accuses me of being a pervert. His nose twitches and I’m gone. I’m so far gone.

     Simon has a smattering of freckles across his nose.

     And then I think of how he hates me and I drag myself back to bed.


	8. Baz

8

**Baz**

     Dear God, it’s like Snow’s a bull in a china shop.

     I’d just like to say that when  _ I’m _ rooming with someone, I try my best to be as silent as possible so that I don’t disturb them. Simon apparently needs to let the world know that he’s awake and ready to save the day.

     I hear a thud.

     “Ow.” He says (for like the fifth time today, it can’t be past 8 AM).

     The closet door slides open and then I hear Simon sigh loudly. I roll over and try to chase sleep (I was having a delightful Simon dream).

     Is he  _ still _ in front of the closet? How long does it take him to pick the same combination of clothes he’s been wearing since freshman year? (Worn out jeans, some vintage t-shirt, and a pair of beat up Chucks. If it’s winter he likes to wear a school sweatshirt, most of the time it's a purple sweatshirt for the lacrosse team that Agatha’s on.)

     After what seems like ages, Simon slides the closet door shut and then bumps into his desk again.

     “That’s it!” I shout, giving up hope. I reluctantly open my eyes and see Snow staring at me with furrowed eyebrows.

     “What’s wrong?” He asks clutching his clothes to his chest. (Damn...he’s cute.)

     “I can’t sleep if you’re oafing about.” I toss back the sheets and stand up.

     “Oafing isn’t even a word.”

     “It is now.” I say crossing my arms. I turn my back to him and gather up my own clothes before heading for the bathroom.

     “What are you doing?” Simon asks stepping towards me.

     I look back and raise an eyebrow.

     “What does it look like I’m doing? I’m going to shower. Would you like to accompany me?” I taunt.

     “What? I...uh...um...what?” Simon stammers jumping back a step and I’m delighted to see that he’s actually going pink.

     “Oh you know, to make sure I’m not  _ plotting _ .” I roll my eyes and raise an eyebrow. It’s a combination I’ve gotten very good at.

     “No,” Simon dismisses and that bastard means it. “It’s just uh...I was going to shower.”

     He bites his bottom lip and I look a little too long at his mouth. Simon coughs trying to break the silence.

     Oh God, he probably noticed.

     I look back up to his eyes (a dreadfully average shade of blue) and see his confusion.

     Oh my God he knows.

      Damage control, Basilton.

     “Like that’ll help.” I sneer and slam the bathroom door behind me.

     Nice.


	9. Agatha

9

**Agatha**

     I still have nightmares.

     So far, each year I’ve attended college has been met with someone pointing a gun in my direction and it’s all Simon’s fault.

     I’ve been shot at, used as a hostage, and nearly ran over.

     Sometimes when I’m in that in-between state of being asleep and being awake, I can still feel rope. I can still hear the echo of a bullet.

     Someday, Simon isn’t going to be lucky.

     Someday, Simon isn’t going to dodge fast enough.

_      Someday, Simon isn’t going to come back. _

     It’s always a relief to see Simon.

     The last straw was the bank robbery that Simon dragged Penny and me to. He’s always been so obsessed with Baz.

     Simon’s convinced that Baz is going to do something “evil”.

     I think Simon’s just looking for an excuse to hate the guy. (Other than the excuse that he’s flirting with his girlfriend.)

     After Simon and I started dating freshman year, Baz has always been there to meddle. To swoop in and ask me to dance. To wink at me when he’s sure Simon’s watching. To hold my hand.

     I think Simon’s trying to convince me that Baz isn’t good for me.

     But neither is Simon.

     I love Simon but it isn’t  _ enough _ . It’ll never be  _ enough _ because Simon is the “Golden Hero” of Watford University and he chose me. Someone that good and heroic chose me and if he ever runs off to save the day and doesn’t come back, I’ll be the first one they tell and how I react won’t ever be enough.

     And Simon deserves someone who accepts who he is wholeheartedly.

     I can’t help but scowl.

     Maybe he and Penny will finally get together.

     I push my breakfast away and Penny looks up from her book to eye me carefully.

     I ignore her and stand up from the dinner table.

     When Penny had asked me if I wanted to be roommates with her for our final year of schooling, I scoffed.

     “Why don’t you room with Simon?” I asked. I kept walking but Penny just followed after me. It’s impossible to shake Penny off.

     “Simon has to live in the dorms and because I’m asking you.” She said falling in sync with my footsteps.

     I just stared at her.

     “Why?” I asked.

     “Because we’re friends.” She said glancing at me with a  _ duh _ expression.

     “Are we?” I asked.

     “Nicks and Slick, I hope so. I’ve been counting you as a friend since I met you.” Penny said. Both her eyebrows were raised.

     “Yeah but we never hang out without Simon.”

     “Only because he’s always there. Besides, I have my eye on a particular flat and I know you’ll love it.” She said.

     Penny was right.

     Penny is always right.

     Our flat has an open floor plan and large windows that gives it the illusion of being bigger than it really is. It's incredibly lush and I couldn’t say no.

     I walk pass Penny on my way to the bathroom and she reaches out to grab my hand. I stop and glance at her in surprise.

     She closes her book and makes eye contact.

     “I’m here, you know.” She says.

     “I know.” I reply stiffly.

     She rolls her eyes. “I mean, if you ever need to talk, Agatha. I have nightmares too.”

     I stare at Penny; she’s never admitted that any of the crimes she’s helped Simon stop have affected her before.

     I blush and look away.

     “Thank you.”


	10. Simon

10

**Simon**

     Baz is so infuriating.

     I woke up first so I should be the one showering.

     I groan and watch the clock. I was lucky enough that I didn’t have to sign up for any 8 AM classes but not so lucky as to push them off until noon. I have half an hour to make it to my Organized Crime seminar and if I’m late, Professor Davy will probably assign me extra work.

     I bang on the bathroom door.

     “What could you possibly want?” Baz asks.

     “You’re hogging the shower!” I yell.

     Not to mention, he’s probably used all the hot water by now.

     The doors swings open and Baz is glaring at me. A wave of that posh stuff he uses hits me and I make a face. He rolls his eyes.

     “I take morning showers. Get used to it.” He says and pushes past me. I roll my eyes and shut the door behind me.

     I’m in and out in five minutes.

     I reach for a towel and swear because I forgot my clothes on my bed. I feel awkward and peek my head out the door to find the room empty. I breathe a sigh of relief, grab my clothes, and change in the bathroom because Baz can walk in at any moment.

     My phone buzzes and I glance at it to see Penny’s name flash across the screen. Agatha gave me the phone during our second Christmas together, she said she was tired of having to find me if she wanted to get a hold of me.

     “Honestly, Simon. I practically have to flash your name in the sky to get a hold of you.” She said.

_      Good luck on your first day! Try not to get shot at. - P _

     I snort and text back:

_      Thanks, you too. Meet me for lunch? - S _

     I grab my backpack and head out the door.

     My phone buzzes.

_      Sure, let’s do Amy’s cafe. I’ll be a little late. Meet you there. - P _

     I pause staring at my phone and then open a new conversation.

_      Hope your first day back is good. - S _

     I slide into a seat in the front of the class. I would try to sit in the back but the last time I tried that, Professor Davy stopped class.

     “Simon.” Professor Davy said.

     I turned red as the whole room turned back in their seats to look at me.

     “Yes?” I mumbled.

     He just pointed at an empty seat in the front row. He refused to start the lesson until I obeyed.

     I drum my fingers on the desk and wait for class to start. A few more people stroll in after me and Professor Davy still remains to be unseen.

     My phone buzzes.

_      You too. - A _

-

     After class, Professor Davy just rushes out.

     “Professor!” I shout trying to catch up to him.

     He avoids eye contact and turns the corner. I stop because I know when I’m not wanted and Professor Davy goes through these weird cycles when he completely avoids me.

     I have another class before lunch: Politics in the 21st Century. Penny made me take the class because she thinks I’ll be a leader someday. I think I can’t be expected to figure out what’s best for others.

     From what I can tell, I’ll like it enough so I won’t complain.

     I’m out of class and the sun is shining bright. I squint and I think I can see Agatha rushing off somewhere. I don’t bother to get her attention; she looks busy.

     When I enter the cafe I find that it’s brightly lit with pale yellow walls and large windows. I’ve never been here before, but Penny has and she raved about their turkey panini.

     “Hello, my name is Madison and I’ll be your server today!” A tall blonde says when I sit down at a booth. “How may I get you started?”

     She has a pen poised and ready. Madison is so enthusiastic that I can’t help but think she’s new.

     “Uh...chocolate milk please, if you have it. I’m waiting for someone.” I say. She nods and rushes off to get my drink.

     A few minutes pass by and Penny walks through the door with an apologetic look.

     “Sorry, I had to ask my counselor something.” She says and slides into the booth. Penny asks the waitress for a tea when she comes back with my milk and then turns to me again. “Okay, let’s plan.”

     “What for?” I ask.

     She rolls her eyes. (She does that a lot.)

     “The year. Come on, what are we thinking about getting done this year?”

     I think for a moment.

     “I’d like a normal year.”

     Penny eyes me and frowns. “Then why do you say it like you’re not going to get it?”

     It’s my turn to roll my eyes.

     “You know why.”

     “Simon, I swear if you say Baz I’m leaving.”

     “But Baz is going to plan something. Especially now that I’m his roommate.” I blurt despite Penny’s warnings.

     She sighs and dramatically gets up from the booth. I grab her hand as she passes me and drag her back.

     “Simon, why would he do anything? And why especially when you’re his roommate?” She asks. Despite her warning, she sits back down across from me.

     “Because now I’m vulnerable, Penny. He’s probably taking note of all my weaknesses as we speak!” I grumble.

     Penny manages to stop herself mid eye roll.

     “What has he done to get you to hate him so much?” She asks and I can’t help but stare at her. My mouth opens and closes before I can finally speak.

     “You were there!” I say.

     “Refresh my memory.”

     “He purposefully got in the way of me and Agatha.” I say ticking off a finger. “He tried to get Professor Davy fired.” Another finger goes up. “He tried to  _ kill me _ .” Another finger. “And he’s the reason I’m not on the football team!”

     At the beginning of sophomore year, I had decided to try out at the request of Coach Mac but Baz hid my uniform and, while I was searching, told Coach Mac that I was asthmatic and prone to terrible asthma attacks. Coach Mac never believed it when I refused it and he told me he didn’t want me getting hurt on the field.

     Baz, of course, is on the team because Baz is basically perfect in both sports and academics. It’s no wonder why he constantly flirts with Agatha, he’s probably convinced that I’m not good enough for her.

     “Simon,” Penny says and I cross my arms at the tone.

     A pause.

     “Don’t you think you talk about him too much?” Penny continues. She thanks Madison for the tea and waits until the waitress is back behind the counter to continue talking. “Don’t you think you could just ignore him and focus on having an amazing last year?”

     I think about it.

     “What if he does something and I’m not there to stop it?” I ask.

     “It’s not your job to stop it.” She responds.

     “But I live with the guy now.” I counter.

     Penny sighs and takes a sip of her tea. She thinks for a bit before leaning towards me with an idea.

     “Okay, how about this? You can only talk about Baz about ten percent of our total conversation time.”

     I glare at her. Penny knows I hate math. And how am I supposed to keep track of that? But I can see she’s not going to budge so I sigh and nod.

     “Fine, okay.”

     “Good.” She smiles.


	11. Baz

11

**Baz**

     Simon learned to take his showers at night and I learned to fall asleep to music so he doesn’t wake me up. It turns out I’m not the only one plagued by nightmares; Simon whimpers in his sleep. He also kicks and shudders and seeing him in pain just drives me insane. Sometimes I’ll catch snatches of his speech and it sends dread up my spine.

     Last night he cried out, “Please don’t hurt me.”

     Living with him is a constant struggle between wanting to suck his face and wanting to punch him. And every time I hear him cry out in the middle of the night, my immediate impulse is to wake him up and hold him. I want to kiss his brow and say, “ _Deep breaths, Snow, it’s just a dream. Let some of what you’re holding onto go because it’s not good for you and I worry."_ But I never do. Instead I just ignore it and taunt him when given the chance. I know if I bring it up, Snow would probably punch me and have no qualms about it.

     So I just plug in my earphones and face the wall when I sleep.

     Weeks pass like that.

     It’s an uneasy routine but neither of us really talk except to threaten or insult the other so we just keep doing it.

     Bunce swings by occasionally to pick up Simon for their study dates (not the fake kind where you only go in hope of snogging your study buddy but the real kind where Bunce makes sure that Simon is doing his work). When she does come by, she makes sure to cast me a glance. I think she’s trying to remind me of what awaits if I hurt him.

     Like I could actually hurt him.

     Simon is basically indestructible with all that protagonism he exudes.

     But I can’t help but wonder... _where is Agatha?_

     The blonde beauty has been missing, or at the very least, avoiding my room.

     Maybe Simon doesn’t want her around for fear of me _corrupting_ her. I smirk at that.

     My professor calls on me with a question about a Latin proverb and I answer with ease. I may be paying minimal attention to class but I’m not suffering for it.

     My mother always used to drill into me the importance of Latin (and Greek) and even though she died when I was young I still followed my studies, so this class is a breeze. I want to think that if my mother was alive today, she’d be proud of me. I hope wherever she is, she’s proud of me.

     It’s because of her love for language and words that I’ve decided to follow in her footsteps as a Linguistics major. She specialized in historical linguistics but I’m in the language acquisition track. I’m hoping to graduate as valedictorian but Bunce is giving me a run for my money.

     “Please remember that your essays on semantics for your chosen topics are due Friday. I’ll see you all on Wednesday.” Professor Minos says as he wraps up the lecture for today. The room fills up with the sound of a hundred chairs scraping back and footsteps heading for the door. I follow suit and only get minimally jostled by the crowd.

     “Think of the devil.” I say.

     Agatha Wellbelove is standing at the end of the hallway.

     She blushes. “You were thinking about me?”

     “Does Snow know you’re here?” I ask avoiding her question. Simon’s not here so there’s no use in flirting with her. I can tell she’s disappointed though so I look at her for a little while longer than I normally would.

     Agatha doesn’t turn red, per say. Instead roses bloom in her cheeks and she looks positively lovely. (Just because I’m queer doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate a good aesthetic.)

     Today Agatha’s wearing a pastel pink lace dress with a black studded collar peeking out of the neckline and matching cuffs. It must be her latest creation because she catches me studying it and looks proud.

     “I designed it for class.” She explains. Agatha’s a Fashion Design major and it’s really a good fit for her. She’s beautiful and she enjoys making beautiful things.

     “It’s lovely.” I say and I mean it.

     She smiles and then shakes her head. I raise an eyebrow and she frowns.

     “What are you doing here?” I ask. I know that I flirt with her but honestly I never expected her to actually fall for it. I only do it when Simon’s around and that’s just to piss him off.

     She hesitates.

     “I heard you were Simon’s roommate.”

     I scowl. Not this again.

     “Yes, and you don’t have to worry. Bunce already threatened to kill me if I lay a hand on your precious hero.” I sneer.

     Agatha looks amused.

     “I’m sure she has.”

     There’s something off.

     I study Agatha’s expression to find that she’s not jealous.

     That’s new.

     Maybe Simon has finally convinced her that there’s nothing between Bunce and him; that she’s the only one for him and that they’re destined to be the golden couple. He probably proposed or something and the two are going to live happily ever after and produce a whole litter of shiny blonde babies.

     The thought nauseates me.

     “Are you okay?” Agatha asks. She looks worried and takes a step closer.

     “I’m fine.” I manage. (Liar.)

     She looks skeptical but lets it go.

     “I’m not here to threaten you, I don’t think I could if I tried.” She says. The hall is empty now and we’re the only ones in it.

     “Then why are you here?” I ask tilting my head to the side.

     “I need to ask you for a favor.”

     Well...that’s certainly...unexpected.

     “And what on earth could you possibly need from _me_ when you have _Snow_ at your beck and call?” I sigh.

     She frowns at that.

     Interesting.

     “Basil...are you underestimating yourself?” She asks. Nobody calls me Basil, but I let it slide. She says it like it’s a secret and I’m not in the mood to correct her.

     “I’m just curious as to why a good girl would ask for a villain’s help.”

     She rolls her eyes.

     “You’re not a villain. Don’t be so melodramatic. Besides, it has to be you.”

     “Will you spit it out, Wellbelove?” I ask.

     “You share a room with Simon now, and I’m worried about him. I just wanted to know if you’d be willing to update me every now and then about how he’s doing.” She says and runs a hand through her hair. She looks embarrassed to be asking in the first place.

     “Why can’t you just ask him how he’s doing? He is your boyfriend.”

     She looks uncomfortable.

     These two idiots must be in a fight. They’re both probably too proud to admit they're sorry.

     “Never mind. I get it.”

     “You do?” She asks confused.

     “Your face tells the whole story.” I explain.

     “So...will you do it?” She asks looking hopeful.

     I’m about to scoff and say no when I think about it. Wellbelove has basically handed me an excuse to watch Simon all day and well...I liked watching Simon.

     “Fine.” I sigh like it’s a sacrifice. (Can’t look too eager.)

     She smiles.

     “Thanks.” She says and turns around to leave. She stops at the corner and faces me again.

     “Basil?” She says and I try not to roll my eyes at the nickname.

     “Yeah, Agatha?”

     “Simon can’t know about this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm currently trying to figure out a regular schedule to post new chapters and I think what I'm doing now is working.  
> So, I'll post a new chapter every day before 6 PM but that's Pacific Time Zone. Anyways, as always thanks for reading and I hope I don't disappoint!


	12. Simon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a bit late in posting this chapter but I have a totally valid excuse.  
> You see...I was...uh...  
> I was reading something super important.  
> ...Destiel fanfiction.  
> I was reading Destiel fanfiction.  
> I am Supernatural trash.

12

**Simon**

     I miss Agatha.

     I really do.

     Whenever I’m with her I just feel...worthy. Like if someone that beautiful could choose me then maybe I might have a chance to become what’s expected of me. And Agatha is...she’s like a unicorn. Graceful and beautiful and everything good you thought never really existed outside of fiction. Being with her, holding her hand,  _ knowing _ she picked me made me feel untouchable. So when she broke up with me it felt like I had suddenly been dropped into a pit where light doesn’t shine.

     Penny refuses to have me over at their flat whenever she knows Agatha’s going to be there.

     It pisses me off but Penny just wants what’s best for me so I can’t really be angry at her.

     And if Agatha really wanted to fix things she would have reached out by now. She knows where I am and she has my number.

     Maybe Agatha doesn’t want to get back together.

     I shake my head because I can’t think like that.

     Besides, today is beautiful.

     The sun is shining warmly and the air has that crisp feel to it that signals that winter is right around the corner. It’s just warm enough to get away without having to wear a sweater but cold enough to justify one.

     The leaves are jewels that flutter down to the ground each time a breeze blows through.

     I stop at the Great Lawn. There’s a huge gate down the hill to separate the campus from the rest of the city and between the gate and campus there’s a huge expanse of grassy hills where students and faculty like to hang out on nice days like this.

     I drop down and lie on the grass. I close my eyes and focus on my breathing because Penny says that if I want a normal year I can have one. I even managed to talk Ebb into giving me a job at her bakery. I practically haunt her bakery (have since freshman year) and she’s really nice and never minds it. Penny suggested that I get a job and Ebb’s bakery seemed like the perfect place.

     I don’t have a car so I’m passing the time waiting for the bus.

     Eventually the alarm I set for my phone goes off and I walk to the bus stop. The bus rolls up and I step on smiling at the driver.

     He smiles back and I sit down in the front.

     Ebb’s crying when I walk in for work and it would worry me if she didn’t cry all the time.

     “Hiya Simon.” She sniffles.

     “Hey Ebb...something wrong?”

     “Ach. No...it’s just...I miss my school days.” She gives me a watery smile and then stands up.

     “Watford is just uptown, Ebb. You can visit whenever.” I say.

     She gives me a sad smile but doesn’t reply.

     I go in the back to wash up and pull on an apron. It’s my second week on the job now and I’ve got a whole routine down.

     We spend the day baking scones and cookies. Ebb has to keep swatting at me because I can’t help but eat some sour cherry scones fresh out of the oven.

     It’s near the end of my shift when someone walks in to place an order for a large chocolate birthday cake. Ebb gets started on an order that’s due in the morning and even though it’s time to leave I decide to stay and help her.

     “What do you think you’re doing, Simon?” Ebb asks chuckling.

     “I...uh...helping?” I say taking out the butter from the fridge.

     Ebb shakes her head.

     “Your shift is over.”

     “But you still have an order to do and it’s kind of big.” I protest.

     “You’re too kind but no. I’m sure you have homework to take care of, Simon.” She says shooing me out of the kitchen.

     “But helping you seems so much better.” I argue. Ebb laughs and shakes her head again.

     “Go Simon. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

     I relent and say my goodbye.

     The night is cool and I decide to walk back to campus. I’m in no hurry seeing as Baz is probably in the dorm right now blasting music from his stereo.

     Today’s Saturday which means that today is a study day for Baz. Study days for Baz mean that he holes himself up in the dorm all day with a steel look in his silver eyes and a massive stack of flashcards and textbooks. He’ll leave first thing in the morning only to come back with bags filled with food and a sadistic grin.

     I worry about him sometimes…

     Anyways, he’ll blast classical music through his stereo until I shout at him to turn it down.

     He never does which makes me have to get up and leave for literally anywhere else.

     I usually leave before he starts on the pile of food he brings in. I’ve never actually seen him eat now that I think about it…

     I jump back startled when I hear sirens zoom past me and flashing lights. They’re heading in the direction I’m walking in so I pick up my pace to find out what’s going on.

     There’s a police officer pushing back a growing crowd.

     “Oh my God…” I hear a woman whisper as I get closer.

     “What’s happened?” I ask.

     She doesn’t answer.

     I push my way through the crowd until I see what it is.

     There’s a broken girl lying on the floor.

     A police officer is pushing me back now that I’m trying to step forward to get a closer look.

     “Sir...I’m going to need you to get behind the line now.”

     I crane my neck to get a better look but all I can see is a flash of blonde hair before the police officer pushes me back into the crowd.


	13. Penny

13

**Penny**

     My head throbs.

     Studying for several hours straight tends to do that to a person.

     I sigh and sit back. I reach a hand to my temples and gingerly rub small circles. I’m exhausted and no matter how much I blink, the words in my chemistry textbook are blurring together.

     A mug of tea seems to appear out of nowhere and I look up to find Agatha setting it down.

     I raise an eyebrow.

     “Chamomile.” Agatha says shrugging.

     I can feel my lips curve into a smile. As much as I don’t agree with Agatha’s aversion to Simon’s cases, I don’t want to lose her as a friend. I only have two friends and I’d like to keep them at all costs.

     “Why don’t you take a break?” Agatha asks leaning against the table. I don’t like to study in my room because I feel cramped in there, so I study in the dining room.

     “Because, I can’t let my grades slip.” I say pointedly. I sigh and take a sip of tea. It was really nice of Agatha to make it for me.

     “Jesus, Penny. A ten minute break isn’t going to break you.” Agatha says. She rolls her eyes and pushes herself off the table. She walks to the living room but since we have an open floor plan, we can still go on talking like before.

     “Do you think  _ Baz _ is taking a break?” I ask. Baz is my competition for the spot as valedictorian and as much as I hate to admit it...He is giving me a run for my money.

     Both my parents were their school’s valedictorians and I’ll be damned if I’m not.

     Agatha lets out an annoyed sigh.

     “You’re starting to sound like Simon.”

     She freezes.

     Agatha’s been avoiding the topic of Simon since the start of school and every time I bring him up she just holds out a hand and changes the topic. Honestly...these two need to get over it.

     She makes a noncommittal sound and sits down on our couch.

     “What’s up with you two? You spent the entire summer avoiding each other and you’re ignoring him now. I get that it’s awkward but...it’s been like five months.”

     Agatha’s eyes just widen.

     “We broke up, Penny.”

     “Yeah...I  _ know _ that.” I roll my eyes. “Can’t we be friends again?”

     Another noncommittal sound.

     “You do plan on fixing this...right?” I ask turning to her.

     “Why is it my job to fix this?” She asks crossing her arms. Her expression flashes to anger and I suck in a breath. I made a mistake.

     I can’t help but think:  _ Because you’re the one who broke his heart, Agatha. Because he’s still hoping you change your mind. _

     I know it’s not fair of me.

     So instead I just stay silent.

     Agatha’s waiting for me to stick my foot farther in my mouth but I refuse to look stupid. We just end up kind of glaring at each other when a frantic banging hits our door.

     We both jump at the sound and I check the time.

     It’s 8:47 PM.

     Who on  _ earth _ is at the door?

     Agatha’s friends are all at different universities so she just Skypes them. Simon should be off work but on campus. I’m home and so is Agatha so there’s not any other possibilities left.

     Agatha groans and gets off the couch to walk over to the door. She checks the peephole and then spins on her heel.

     “I’m not home. Don’t you dare say I’m home.”

     And with that she practically sprints to her room and shuts the door.

     I stare at her in confusion but get up. I walk over to the door and check the peephole.

     It’s Simon.

     Why is Simon here?

     I swing the door open and try to act casual. Simon should not be here. If he’s about to attempt reconciliation with Agatha he’s just going to be disappointed.

     “Hi, Simon.” I say.

     And then I notice it.

     He’s breathing rapidly as if he’s been running. There’s a bit of sweat on his forehead and his curly hair is frizzy from his hands running over it so many times. I finally reach his eyes and they’re worried and disgusted all at once.

     “Simon?” I say slowly realizing this isn’t a social call. “What’s happened?”

     He runs his hands through his hair again.

     “A girl’s b-been murdered, Penny. She was just...I mean...I was walking home from work and there was a crowd and the police and...and…” Simon’s rushing and he’s stumbling over words trying to get them out.

     I step aside so he can come in. I wait for him to tell me the rest.

     “An ambulance too but that wasn’t necessary because she was  _ dead _ .” Simon says pacing back and forth in the living room.

     “Simon...why are you telling me this?” I ask.

     “Because you should know!” He says throwing his hands up in the air.

     “But...what am I supposed to do? Simon...you can’t be seriously thinking that we have to do something.  _ Right? _ ” I ask stepping closer to him.

     He wanted a normal year.

     He deserves a normal year.

     Simon stops mid stride and faces me.

     “Penny...we can’t just stand around and do nothing.”

     “Simon...you promised that you wouldn’t get in trouble this year.”

     “ _ Penny _ .”

     “ _ Simon. _ ” I warn.

     He turns red and angry and I know it’s not entirely at me. Simon is angry at the thought that some poor girl got killed and her murderer is still free.

     “Who was murdered?” I sigh giving in a little.

     He just shakes his head.

     “Jane Doe...she didn’t carry any identification on her. But…” Simon squints his eyes and then shakes his head.

     “What?”

     “Never mind. What should we do?” He asks.

     I cross my arms because I know he’s not going to like my answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not really happy with how this chapter turned out but I know I needed to get a chapter out so I hope it's not too bad. Anyways...I just wanted to let y'all know that I won't be updating tomorrow on account of it being my brother's birthday. I won't be updating Sunday either because I'll be getting home late and I'll probably be too tired to write a new chapter. A new chapter will be posted on Monday, however, and everything will go back to normal.


	14. Simon

14

**Simon**

     “ _ What? _ ” I ask staring at Penny.

     “Simon…” She groans.

     I’ve stopped pacing because Penny isn’t reacting the way I thought she would. I thought that the moment I came over and told her, she’d have a game plan. Penny  _ always _ has a game plan. And we could stop the murderer. It’s not right that he gets to walk free after what he’s done.

     I stare at her waiting for her to continue.

     “All I’m saying is...maybe we should leave this to the professionals.” Penny says crossing her arms.

     “ _ Why? _ ” I ask frustrated.

     Penny looks exasperated.

     “For one, maybe because  _ you aren’t a police officer _ .” Penny says throwing her hands in the air.

     I scoff.

     “Simon, might I remind you that you are a  _ student _ .”

     “That hasn’t stopped us before.” I reply.

     “That’s because we happened to stumble into those. This has  _ nothing _ to do with us.” Penny sighs. She takes off her glasses and pinches the bridge of her nose.

     I notice she’s a bit pale.

     But still...there was something about that crime scene that didn’t sit well with me. Well...besides the fact that there was a murdered girl on the floor.

     I just couldn’t put my finger on it…

     Penny sways and I take a step towards her immediately. She looks awful and I feel a shot of guilt go through me. I should have noticed that.

     “Are you alright?” I ask.

     “Please don’t ask stupid questions.” Penny says and she sits down right where she’s standing. “I’ve got a bit of a headache is all.”

     I give her a look.

     “Seems like it’s more than a bit.”

     She glares at me and I drop it.

     “Even if we wanted to help, Simon...we don’t have the clearance for that.” Penny continues. “And...I think you shouldn’t get involved.”

     Penny always wants to get involved. What the hell is going on?

     She must have seen the look on my face because she says, “Simon, I just think that you should try to follow through on your promise.”

     “But—”

     “And I think you only want to help because of what Professor Davy’s said to you throughout the years.”

     I stop because I can’t argue with that.

     Ever since I managed to stop a robbery freshman year, Professor Davy has treated me differently. It’s almost like he expects me to single handedly save the world and I just don’t want to disappoint the guy.

     “Promise me, Simon, that you won’t get involved. It has nothing to do with you and you wanted a normal year, remember?”

     “ _ Penny _ .” I sigh but I know I’m going to give in because this is the one time Penny’s ever stopped me from getting involved. Every time before she just accepted it and helped so something must be up to get her to stop me this time.

     “ _ Simon _ .” She warns and I let out another breath.

     “Fine.”

     “Promise me.”

     “I promise.”

-

     A couple of days pass and nothing else happens. I try to ignore the news reports about it because I know I’ll go bonkers if I have to keep hearing about it. The one thing I do notice is that they still haven’t found the guy.

     I rest my head against the wall and close my eyes.

     I miss Agatha.

     I still haven’t seen her and I don’t know if I want to see her when we’re alone or when we’re with Penny.

     I think it would be better if Penny was there.

     Baz is nowhere to be seen today. He’s been gone since I woke up so it’s not like I could follow him to see what he’s up to.

     I think I should just walk somewhere...anywhere.

     So I do.

     I shove my feet into my Chucks and barely remember to take my room key too. I wander around and try not to think.

     About how I probably ruined my only chance with the most beautiful girl I’ve ever met.

     About how I don’t trust how quiet Baz has been.

     About how I wish Penny wasn’t acting like we’re suddenly regular people who don’t meddle with police business.

     “Hello, Simon.”

     I look up and freeze.

     “Agatha?”


	15. Agatha

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really sorry for not getting out a chapter yesterday. I had a last minute thing come up and I had to visit a friend because she's already at college and I hadn't seen her in ages. Everything should be back to normal, I'm just...really sorry that I wasn't able to get this out on time.

15

**Agatha**

     I heard all of Simon and Penny’s argument that night when he practically broke down our door.

     And I have to admit that I was completely shocked when I heard Simon agree to letting the police handle everything.

     I’m even more shocked that Penny didn’t want to help him solve the murder.

     When Simon finally left I couldn’t help it...I slipped out my door and walked into the living room.

     Penny was lying on the couch with an arm thrown across her face. All the lights were turned off and it was obvious that Penny was still suffering from that headache.

     She must have heard me though because when I spoke she didn’t jump or anything.

     “Why did you make Simon promise not to get involved?”

     “I thought you, of all people, wouldn’t mind.”

     “I never said I did, I’m just curious on why you did.”

     Penny sat up and winced a little.

     “Simon deserves to have one normal year.” She said simply.

     I narrowed my eyes because I knew that wasn’t it. Penny hates normal.

     “And?” I asked.

     Penny looked at her hands.

     “And...we’ve never dealt with a murderer before.” She whispered.

     “What are you talking about?” I asked. “Yeah we have.”

     She shook her head and winced again. I walked back to hand her the mug of chamomile even though it was probably cold.

     She took a sip anyways.

     “No, at least...not directly. We’ve only ever handled thieves and conspirators. All of whose M.O. was to get money or power. But...a murderer?” Penny said quietly. Goosebumps race along my arms when what she was saying finally sunk it.

     “A murderer just wants to kill.” I replied.

     “Exactly. There won’t be hesitation like before.”

     There was a moment of silence.

     “I don’t want Simon anywhere near that.”

     I couldn’t stop thinking after that. I’ve been ignoring Simon because I was angry at him for dragging me along and getting me in trouble but...if he’s promised to have a normal year then my decision to keep myself safe by staying away from him is a moot point.

     And it’s been months...maybe I should just forgive him and try to be friends again.

     Baz  _ did _ say that he’s been “dreadfully average.”

-

     I’m walking out of class when I see Simon walking across the field. He looks lost in thought and he’s glaring at the floor not looking where he’s going.

     My heart races a little when I see him, not from love or anything, just from finally confronting him.

     “Hello, Simon.” I say when I’m just a few feet from him.

     Simon glances up at me and stops.

     “Agatha?”

     Shock spreads across his face and I try not to fidget.

     “Um...how was your summer?” Simon says and I try not to grimace.  _ This _ is what he wants to ask after five months of no contact?

     “Good...quiet.” I reply.

     He’s avoiding eye contact.

     “Did you, um, travel?” He asks.

     God, this is awkward.

     “Just for shows.” I say. I’m a show jumper.

     I look at him expectantly and he’s still avoiding eye contact.

     “Do you want me to go?” I sigh. Maybe this won’t work after all, I mean...being friends with your ex is weird.

     “No!” He rushes. He clears his throat, “It’s uh...good to see you.”

     I smile.

     “It’s good to see you too.”

     Simon finally smiles at that. He lifts his head and looks at me.

     “Simon,” I start but Simon’s saying something too. “Er...sorry. You can go first.”

     “Agatha...I’m sorry.” He says.

     “What?”

     “I’m sorry for everything I put you through. I shouldn’t expect my girlfriend to be okay when all our dates consist of putting our lives in danger. And you never wanted to do that in the first place.” Simon says and looks down at his shoes.

     I don’t know what to say.

     “I guess...what I’m saying is...I understand why you got angry and left me.”

     Is Simon finally over me? If he is then maybe...maybe being friends will work out.

     “Look, uh, Agatha, I know that I was a terrible boyfriend and everything but I really don’t want to lose you and...I miss you.” Simon stutters and takes a step towards me. He awkwardly reaches for my hand and I let him hold it.

     “Are...you...do you...want to get back together?” I ask afraid of the answer.

     His eyes light up and I can feel my heart plummet. I wince on the inside because I accidentally got his hopes up for nothing.

     “Yeah,” Simon smiles. “Do you?”

     I hesitate for a moment. How bad would it really be if I got back together with him? People expect it anyways. But...Simon doesn’t deserve that. Simon deserves something real and as sorry as I am, we aren’t it.

     It’s not what I want. Everyone might think they know where I belong but I know this is not it.

     “No.” I say firmly. “I’m sorry, but I don’t want to get back together.”

     Simon’s face falls and I can see the pain behind his eyes.

     “What?” He asks and his voice breaks.

     “I don’t think we should get back together.”

     Simon looks down at his shoes. I take a deep breath and continue.

     “I don’t think we’re good together.”

     “But...Agatha...I love you.” Simon forces out and I know it’s not true. It’s a last ditch effort and it nearly works.

     I shake my head again.

     “No, Simon, you don’t. You like the idea of a happily ever after and you like the idea of me. But I don’t want to be some idea you hold onto.” I whisper. 

     “But...don’t you want a happily ever after?” Simon asks and takes up my other hand.

     “I don’t know…” I try not to look him in the eye so I look past his shoulder and I can see Baz walking across the field.

     He’s everything Simon isn’t and I still don’t want it.

     Simon catches me staring and turns his head. Baz looks up and sees us staring. And like always, he just  _ has _ to piss off Simon. Baz winks at me and licks his lips. He meets Simon’s gaze and smirks before he’s off again and I take a mental note to kick his ass.

     Simon immediately drops my hands. He takes a few steps back and looks down at his feet again. I can hear the betrayal in his voice when he speaks.

     “Are...are you seeing Baz?” He asks and his hands are curled into fists and he’s shaking.

     “No.” I say. Well...not in the sense Simon’s talking about.

     “I...I have to go. I’ll see you around, Agatha.” He says flatly.

     And then he leaves.


	16. Baz

16

**Baz**

     “Your essay on the semantics of languages for bilingual children was fascinating, Mr. Pitch.” Professor Minos says as he passes my essay back.

     “I’m glad you enjoyed it.” I reply looking at my paper.

     “Needless to say, you’ve earned an A.” Professor Minos says before he’s off to the next student.

     “Obviously.” I smirk.

     Professor Minos goes on to talk about last night’s homework while I drift off in thought.

     I’m supposed to be meeting with Agatha tonight on how Snow’s been but I haven’t _seen_ Snow since I saw him talking with Wellbelove on the field a few days ago, so I don’t know what exactly to report. And oh God, since when have I reduced myself to a petty spy?

     This is all goody two-shoed Simon’s fault with his adorable moles and stupid looking grin.

     Although lately he’s been glaring at me, more so than usual anyways.

     Now the only time I get to see him is when he comes in late at night and falls asleep right after his shower.

     I’m jostled back to reality with the sound of chairs scraping and I thank past me for getting in the habit of recording all my lectures because I’m pretty sure that Professor Minos ended with, “Make sure you have this down, it’ll be on the exam.”

     I scoop up my recorder and grab my bag. When my bag hits my shoulder, I wince a little because I’m incredibly sore in my shoulders and calves. Football has training practically all the time now and tonight’s the only night I have off. I smirk a little, whenever we have home games Simon is always there in the stands. It’s like he thinks that I’ll do something in the middle of a fucking game.

     I wonder if he’ll be at my game tomorrow.

     I shake my head. Even if he does show, there’s _nothing_ to expect. Snow’s with Agatha which unfortunately means he’s probably straight. And on the off chance that he is bisexual or pansexual, Snow hates me.

     I make my way to the dorms and slide my key card. There’s a slight buzzing noise before the door unlocks and I’m let in. I drop my things off on my side of the room and sit in my desk chair. I search for the remote before I curse and realize it’s probably on Snow’s side.

     I’m in the middle of ruffling through his unmade bed when I hear the buzzing noise again and I swear.

     “What the hell are you doing?” I hear behind me.

     “Fuck.”

     Simon stomps his way to me and stares me down. I refuse to back down so I just pull the entire sheet off and I hear something tumble to the floor.

     “Aha!” I say and bend down to get it. I wave the remote control in front of Snow’s face with a smirk. “I wouldn’t have to go through your disgustingly messy side of the room if you remembered that the remote control stays on the shared window sill.”

     He just glowers at me before throwing his sheets back onto his bed.

     I watch him in my peripheral vision. He grabs something off his desk, bumps into the corner of his desk, swears, and then leaves. Snow slams the door shut and I let out a breath. Usually he just ignores my presence, but I guess I did break the unspoken rule (Don’t touch my stuff).

     I turn on the television and the first channel that pops up is the news.

     “Second homicide to plague this city...so far officials are saying there are no known witnesses—”

     I scowl and skip through the channels. Nothing is on so I turn off the television.

     Since Simon isn’t here I decide to play a song on the violin before I catch the time. It’s 6 meaning I have to meet with Wellbelove.

     I throw on a sports jacket and stick my key card into my slacks. I’m out the door and I see that Snow’s pouting just outside the common area. I try (and fail) at keeping in a chuckle.

     I can feel his glare, even when I turn the corner.

     I meet Wellbelove at a small cafe just outside campus. She’s already there and I walk over to the cashier to order a coffee and a muffin (the muffin is for when I’m alone). She looks irritated when I slide into a chair across from her.

     “You’ll develop wrinkles if you keep making that face.” I sneer. Agatha rolls her eyes but she stops making the face.

     “What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?”

     She narrows her eyes at me.

     “Basil,” She warns and her voice is low and angry. I don’t bother correcting her at this point.

     “Yes?” I ask coolly.

     “You know what you did.” She says.

     “Actually, I don’t.” I growl. I hate it when people assume I know things.

     She sighs and takes an angry sip of her drink.

     “Well?” I snarl. “Are you going to tell me, _princess_?”

     She leans forward suddenly and her voice is filled with anger.

     “You! You, just _had_ to piss Simon off didn’t you?” She asks, her eyebrows are knitted together and her mouth is set in an angry line.

     I still don’t know what this is about but I reply with, “Obviously.”

     “I was finally talking to him and you have to go ahead and wink at me!” Agatha seethes.

     It finally dawns on me and I can’t help but smirk.

     “Oh, so what? You guys were already having trouble in paradise.” I counter and Wellbelove just huffs indignantly.

     That’s why Simon was angry with me. I can work with that.

     “Stop it. Alright?” Agatha sighs after several moments of silence.

     I don’t answer, I just scowl.

     “If that’s all, then I have to get back. There are more _pressing_ matters than your love life.” I sneer.

     “Wait.” Agatha says and she reaches out to grab my sleeve. I raise an eyebrow at her and she blushes and looks back down at her drink. She doesn’t let go though.

     “Yes?”

     “How is he?” She asks.

     “If you’re worried about him, you could just talk to him. It would save _my_ time.” I say.

     “He would take it the wrong way.” Wellbelove replies.

     “And what way is that?” I ask, my interest is piqued.

     She doesn’t answer.

     I sigh and reluctantly reply.

     “He’s angry and I haven’t seen much of him except for when he slips into our room to shower and sleep.”

     Agatha frowns and nods slowly. She finally lets me go.

     “I’ll see you next week.” She says.

     “Whatever.”

     I turn and see a flash of bronze but I blink and it’s gone.


	17. Simon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting ready for college is...demanding to say the least. I'm sorry that I haven't updated in awhile but I'm going to have to find a new time to post that works with my new schedule. Please bear with me while I try to find out what time works best for me.
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.

17

**Simon**

     Why would Agatha _lie_ to me?

     I think that’s what hurts most about this thing, that she didn’t trust me enough or didn’t think I could handle the truth. Because, I could have. I could have totally handled the fact that she’s seeing Baz.

     Maybe...maybe not right away. But I could see it; it wouldn’t be out of the blue and it wouldn’t have blindsided me.

     They both come from respected families who have at least a family member in office. They both _looked_ like royalty. Agatha the princess and Baz the prince.

     I growl.

     I shouldn’t have followed Baz, but I had nothing else to do and he had this stupid smirk on his face when he passed by. I _knew_ he was up to something and he was.

     He’s with Agatha.

     That’s why he’s been so quiet and he’s been watching me with these odd expressions. He’s been _laughing_ at me this entire time because I had no clue.

     I practically fly back to my room. I shove my key card in the slot and hear the whirring click before the door opens and when I’m safely inside I slam the door and then I slam it again for good measure.

     Did Penny know about this?

     I shake my head and add this night to the list of things to never think about.

     They were leaning so closely together and Agatha couldn’t let his arm go…

     Nope, no thinking.

     I look around and it dawns on me that _Baz lives here_.

     He could come in any minute and I would be stuck in a room with the guy dating my ex. I don’t even bother with the key card this time (I won’t be coming back for awhile), I just fling the door open and barrel out.

     “Agh!”

     “Fuck.”

     I grunt and Baz groans beneath me.

     “Get off of me you numpty!” Baz snarls and shoves me off of him. I scramble to my feet and Baz takes his time glaring at me before he sits up.

     I open my mouth to say something but nothing comes out.

     He just raises an eyebrow before pretending to pick lint off his jacket. Another moment passes and he pulls himself up to tower over me.

     I still don’t know what to say but I can’t help but curl my hands into fists. They shake at my side while I try to muster something up.

     “Well?” Baz says.

     “I saw you with Agatha.” I blurt out.

     He freezes.

     “I followed you to your secret date.” I say. “Did you really think I wouldn’t find out?”

     “Date?” Baz asks.

     “Yeah, date. It’s obvious she’s done with me and you were always trying to get between me and her.” I growl. “I hope you’re fucking happy.”

     Baz winces and he shakes his head.

     “I didn’t get in between you two.” Baz says and my eyes widen. There’s something in his voice that’s different from his usual snarkiness.

     “Sod off.” I say. He reaches for my arm but I shove it off. He looks pained and I pause for a moment. Baz never looks pained. But I shake my head and just try to keep my distance. Baz frowns and then he glares at me like _I’m_ the one at fault here.

     “How much did you see?” He sighs.

     “Enough.” I say. “I saw how close you guys were and how she couldn’t take her hand off of you. I shouldn’t even be surprised…”

     Baz narrows his eyes at me.

     “Why not?”

     “Because you’re bloody perfect and she’s bloody perfect.” I mutter. His eyebrows raise at that. I roll my eyes and shake my head. “Just...treat her right.”

     “Ever the hero, Snow. Even when you think you’ve lost the girl you still want her happy.”

     I grit my teeth. This isn’t some fucking story.

     “But here’s the thing,” Baz says and he closes the distance between us to try to intimidate me, “I don’t love her, idiot.”

     I can feel his breath on my face and I blink rapidly. My brain shuts down for a few seconds before it boots back up again and I finally make eye contact.

     “You don’t?” I ask.

     He rolls his eyes but doesn’t move. “Why would I lie?”

     “You arse!” I shout and shove him back. He stumbles back trying to find his balance. He looks at me confused and I get back in his face and shove him again.

     “What the hell, Snow? I thought you’d be _happy_ to hear that.”

     I grimace and huff.

     “ _Happy?_ Why would you flirt with her if you don’t love her?”

     He just shrugs and says, “To piss you off.”

     I’m going to punch him. I’m going to wipe that smirk right off his purebred face.

     “Expulsion!” Baz shouts as I raise my fist. I leave it in the air for a second before I drop it reluctantly. He straightens and fixes his shirt. “Anyways, you and your girlfriend need to talk instead of dragging me into your stupid affairs. I’m done flirting with her.”

     “She’s not my girlfriend,” I mutter. Baz stiffens but I continue anyways, “And you can’t just _do_ that! She likes you Baz, better than she likes me.”

     “Why don’t you let her decide that for herself?” Baz snarls. He tilts his head and looks me up and down. “But let’s go back for a second.”

     I just stare at him.

     “What?” I manage.

     “What do you mean ‘she’s not my girlfriend’?” He asks.

     I groan. This is so not what I want to be talking about so I just shrug. Baz stills watches me though so I shrug again hoping he’ll just drop it.

     “I’m waiting.”

     That bastard.

     “Agatha dumped me.” I say. “Five months ago right after the bank robbery and I _thought_ you two were together after tonight but apparently you don’t love her.”

     “I don’t.”

     “And _why not_ ?” I growl. I take a step forward but Baz doesn’t back down. He just regards me coolly and it’s not fair that I’m all worked up while he’s just standing there _evaluating_ me.

     “She doesn’t matter to me.”

     “But you matter to her. And she’s gold, Baz. How can she not matter to you?” I ask throwing my hands in the air.

     “My God, is there anything in that skull of yours?” Baz whispers. He glances at my face before sighing. “Go and talk to Wellbelove. I’m tired of this. I’m going to bed, try not to think too much or you’ll burn out.”

     He stands there for a moment looking at me and I don’t know why until he purposefully coughs and I realize that I’ve backed him up against a wall.

     “I...uh...sorry.” I bluster.

     “Numpty.” He mutters and pushes past me. He’s getting ready for bed when I realize that I’m blushing and I can’t stop. I make sure to keep my back to him as I collect my things and lock myself in the bathroom for a shower.

     I wait until I can’t hear him moving anymore and I sulk in front of the mirror.

     Why can’t I stop blushing?


	18. Baz

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am back! Sorry for the unexpected hiatus but I will now be posting regularly every Saturday and Sunday before 6 PM Pacific Time Zone. Unfortunately I will be unable to post everyday now that I am back in school but twice a week isn't so bad is it? Anyways...I hope you dig this new chapter.

18

**Baz**

_Because you’re bloody perfect_.

     Crowley...Simon Snow thinks I’m bloody perfect.

     Granted, he also thinks that I’m stealing away his girlfriend and seducing her for my own wicked intents but...still. _Ex-girlfriend_ , I remind myself but I try not to focus on the little burst of happiness that erupts at the thought. There’s still a chance they can get back together, especially after Snow finds out that Agatha’s been worried about him.

     And it’s not like I’ll do anything, even if he is single.

     “And _why_ _not_?” Snow growls. I wipe the surprise from my face and try to stay cool. It takes a moment to realize that Snow didn’t actually read my thoughts but was responding to my earlier statement. He takes another step towards me but there’s nowhere to go. He’s got me backed up against a bloody wall.

     “She doesn’t matter to me.” I say. Thank God, I was obsessed with mimicking my father’s poker face when I was in high school. The way he carries himself...there’s no way to tell what he’s thinking and I wanted to be like that. I practiced in front of the mirror until I got it right.

     “But you matter to her. And she’s gold, Baz. How can she not matter to you?” Snow asks and throws his hands in the air.

_Probably because I’m gay as fuck_ , I think and briefly entertain the idea of what Snow would do if I said it. I’m not quite sure what he would do, he would definitely bluster but what would come after is a mystery.

     Snow is in my face and I’m staring because I can’t help it. I’m lucky he’s oblivious because if he wasn’t he would have caught on by now.

     “My God, is there anything in that skull of yours?” I whisper. I glance at his expression. How could he be _offended_ that I don’t love Wellbelove? Shouldn’t he be happy? Snow makes absolutely no sense sometimes.

     I sigh, “Go and talk to Wellbelove. I’m tired of this. I’m going to bed, try not to think too much or you’ll burn out.”

     I wait for Simon to move aside and he doesn’t. He’s still ignoring personal space from the anger that’s rolling off of him and it wouldn’t take much to kiss him. I would just have to lean in a few more inches...

     And then he’d punch me for sure. The threat of expulsion would do nothing to save me.

     I cough and Simon realizes how close we are, that he’s trapped me against a wall.

     “I...uh...sorry.” He blusters.

     I color and I immediately duck my head and push past him so he doesn’t see.

     “Numpty.”

     I make a show out of getting ready for bed so I don’t have to face him. I hear a door close and I turn to see the bathroom light escaping from the bottom of the door. I let out a breath and slump into bed.

     Simon Snow thinks I’m bloody perfect.

-

     I pluck my earbuds out in the morning when the sun hits my face. I swear and immediately get up to close the blinds. I hate direct sunlight and Snow must know that because he opens the damn blinds every chance he gets. I spin on my heel to chew him out and find his bed empty. I squint at the clock and find it’s barely even 8.

     I frown and lock myself in the bathroom to get ready for the day.

     Today’s game day and so instead of my usual crisp button up shirt, I pull on my jersey. I leave on my slacks because I can’t be bothered to dig up a pair of jeans from the bottom of my wardrobe.

     I go through the day with a lot of “Good luck!” and “You nervous?” sent my direction. When my last class ends I rush to my dorm to drop off my books and when I reach the hallway I see a familiar figure sat in front of my door with her stupid Doc Martens gleaming dully under the light.

     “Fiona?” I ask incredulously.

     “Baz!” She turns her head to me and gives me a wicked smile. She stands and embraces me in a hug that drives most of the air out of my lungs.

     “What are you doing here?” I ask hugging her back. My aunt may be a wannabe anarchist but she’s still a badass and I still love her.

     “Can’t I see my favorite nephew without reason?” She asks quirking her eyebrow up.

     “I’m your only nephew.” I reply.

     “Still my favorite though.” She quips.

     I stick my card key in and lead us inside. Thankfully Snow is still gone. Fiona and him have a somewhat...complicated history. Fiona may have hired someone to intimidate him so he’d get off my back junior year.

     “I have a game today.” I warn. Whatever she wants me to do won’t be accomplished today.

     “I know. That’s why I’m here actually.” Fiona says resting a hand on her hip. She blows out a breath that pushes her bangs out of her eyes and smiles brightly.

     “That’s it?” I ask curiously.

     “And...I need something out of Natasha’s office.” She shrugs. Even though it’s Professor Davy’s office now, Fiona never stopped referring to it as my mother’s.  I groan and shake my head. I knew there was something else.

     “What could you possibly need?” I ask.

     “Something...anything. I just...I miss her.” She says and looks down at her scuffed up boots.

     My heart thuds painfully in my chest. My mother’s death anniversary is coming up and I was hoping that I wouldn’t have to remember until it happened.

     “Will you...will you go with me?” Fiona asks looking up at me through her lashes.

     “I can’t today.” I sigh. “But maybe tomorrow?”

     I know I shouldn’t but I can’t say no to Fiona. She’s the first person I came out to and she never treated me any differently...unlike my father.

     She smiles and pulls me into another hug.


	19. Agatha

19

**Agatha**

     “You’re so lucky you don’t have class today.” Penny says. She’s still in her room and when I pass by I can see that she’s still in bed.

     “You didn’t have to sign up for an 8 AM elective.” I chide. “On a Friday no less.”

     Penny finally drags herself up and out of her room. She stumbles into the kitchen and wipes at her eyes. I can tell she’s not fully awake because her glasses are nowhere to be seen. That doesn’t stop her from pulling out a mug and squinting at tea boxes though.

     “How can you tell what you’re choosing?” I ask. I lie down on the sofa; I’m tired but my body is still humming from the nightmare that woke me up. My nightmares always have to do with the sounds of bullets and screams.

     “The boxes are different colors.” Penny says in a  _ duh _ tone.

     I choose to ignore that.

     “Do you want a cup?”

     “Of what?”

     I hear Penny rummaging around and then she pulls a blue box close to her face and squints before she waves the box in my direction and says, “Earl Grey?”

     “No, I’m going to see if I can go back to bed after you leave.” I say. 

     Living with Penny has been surprising. When I accepted her offer I thought I would have to put up with a lot of shenanigans and hide from Simon but it’s been surprisingly easy. Penny doesn’t even complain that I talk with Minty on the phone really late into the night.

     Penny sets the kettle and then disappears into her room. She comes back dressed in her usual attire of a knee length skirt, a white shirt with a striped tie, and a cardigan. Penny loves to dress like a schoolgirl apparently. She pulls her hair (a lovely shade of lilac) into a high ponytail and pushes her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

     She’s headed for the door in fifteen minutes with a travel mug. Penny’s slipping on her chunky shoes when she pauses and turns to me.

     “Hey Agatha?” She asks.

     “Yeah?”

     “There’s a game today.” She says. “And...I was wondering if you wanted to go see it?”

     I stay quiet.

     “Phone me your decision.”

     And she’s out the door.

-

     I wake up to the sound of knocking.

     I sit up groggily and rub sleep out of my eyes. The knocking won’t stop so I shout, “In a second!”

     I look down at my pajamas and weigh if it’s worth changing. I rush to my closet and throw on jeans and a blouse before opening the door.

     “Simon.” I breath out.

     “Hey.” Simon says sheepishly. He looks down at his shoes and then glances back up at me.

     “Um...Penny’s not here.” I say.

     “I know.” Simon replies. He clears his throat and says, “Uh...can I come in?”

     I awkwardly move to the side to let him through and close the door after him.

     “We need to talk.” He says. He looks like he wants to sit on the sofa so I motion towards it and he nods. We sit down, a cushion between us.

     “About?” I ask.

     “I know you’ve been seeing Baz.” He says.

     “Simon, it’s not—” I stop because ‘It’s not what it looks like’ sounds guilty.

     Simon looks down at his hands and then he stares at me. His mouth is set in a line and his jaw is pushed forward the way it always is when he’s made up his mind about doing something.

     “I followed Baz yesterday and I know you probably think that’s weird but he was acting weird. I followed him to a cafe and I saw you two. Agatha,” Simon says and he grabs my hand but it’s different this time. He’s not trying to convince me to get back together with him, he looks like he’s sorry for what he’s going to say. “Agatha, Baz doesn’t love you.”

     I’m stunned and I just look at Simon for a few moments because why would I care if Baz loved me or not?

     “Um, okay.” Is all I can say.

     Simon makes a face and then leans back in shock.

     “You don’t care?”

     “Um...no. Why would I care if Baz loves me?” I ask.

     “But...but...you went on a date with him last night.” Simon stutters.

     I sigh because it turns out Simon will know after all.

    “No I didn’t. Simon, Baz and I have an...agreement.” I say. I push my hair out of my face and continue, “Simon...I meant what I said before, I don’t want to get back together. I don’t think we fit romantically but that doesn’t mean I’ve stopped caring about you. I asked Baz to keep an eye on you and to tell me how you’re doing because I worry.”

     Simon looks at me like I’ve grown another head.

     “You...worry?” He says slowly.

     “Of course I do.”

     “But...why?” He asks scratching the back of his head.

     Simon Snow may be a lot of things but the one thing he doesn’t seem to be is bright. I sigh and can’t help but chuckle a bit. He frowns and there’s a wrinkle that appears on his forehead.

     “Because I care.” I say. “I won’t ever stop caring because I’m your friend Simon.”

     “Then why did you avoid me?”

     I look down. “Because it would have been awkward to hang around you if you expected to get back together.”

     Silence fills the space between us for what seems like hours.

     And then finally, “So...you still care? Even if I’ve risked your life? Even if I was a terrible boyfriend?”

     “I’m not going to lie. I’m still pissed with you for those things...but I still care. I just...I couldn’t ask you directly how you were, that I was worried, without you getting the wrong idea. I didn’t want to hang around you if you were going to get the wrong idea.”

     Simon chews his bottom lip and then blows out a breath.

     “I meant what I said earlier...when we were on the Great Lawn.” Simon says and fidgets.

     “Simon, I can’t get back together with you.” I start but he shakes his head.

     “No, I know...what I meant was...I, uh, I really don’t want to lose you. I’ve missed you, Agatha.” He says and looks up at me through his lashes shyly. I look at him quizzically.

     “I don’t understand.”

     He looks frustrated and finally locks eyes with me.

     “I guess what I’m trying to say is, I’m okay with your decision. But...I’m not okay with you freezing me out like you have these past few months. Can we just...Can we be friends?”

     I smile.

     “There’s a game today, Simon. Do you want to go see it?”


	20. Penny

20

**Penny**

     It's so loud I can barely hear myself think.

     “WHO ARE WE?!” A cheerleader yells into a megaphone.

     “WATFORD!” The mass of people on the home side replies.

     “WHAT ARE WE?!”

     “PROUD!”

     I don’t really like football. But it’s a chance to get out of the house and Agatha said she’d come after she finished her homework.

     “W-A-T-F-O-R-D FOOTBALL’S OUR SPECIALTY.”

     Watford is playing against Hogwarts, a long time rival for the university. The two have been head to head in both sports and academics, consistently turning out bright minds and talented athletes.

     I spread out a blanket across the bench to save some room for Agatha but I’m afraid that it won’t work. More and more people are pouring into the bleachers and I’m getting more jostled by the minute. I glance around and catch Baz staring at me. I’m four rows up so I could be mistaken but he’s definitely looking in my direction. I quirk up an eyebrow and meet his gaze head on. He flashes a sneer in my direction before jogging off to the rest of his team.

     He looked like he was searching for something…

     “Excuse me, is this seat taken?”

     “Yes, I’m saving it for a—Simon!” I say glancing up and see Simon grinning from ear to ear. He looks really happy and I grin back. I pull him into a hug immediately and then I realize that Agatha’s coming.

     “What are you doing here?” I ask.

     “Agatha invited me!” He beams.

     Oh, God, what have they done?

     “Tell me. Tell me everything now.” I demand and pull Simon’s sleeve so that he sits down next to me. He laughs and nods.

     “I stopped by your flat today.” Simon starts, “I needed to talk to Agatha.”

     “What made you do it?” I ask.

     “Baz said I should.” He says.

     “ _Baz_?” I ask glancing back at where he stood huddled with the team.

     “Yeah...it’s...it’s been a weird couple of days.” Simon mumbles and scratches the back of his head.

     He’s not telling me something but I’m going to get it out of him.

     “What happened? And tell me _everything_.” I say.

     Simon tells me about how Agatha had come up to him to talk and how he’d gotten angry at her and Baz. How Baz was acting suspicious so he followed him and saw him and Agatha on what he thought was a date. How Baz and him got into a fight. How Agatha admitted to using Baz to keep tabs on him.

     “I think we’re good now. We agreed to be friends at least.” Simon finishes. And I’m happy and all for that, Merlin knows that I’ve been getting tired of walking on eggshells around them. But...there was something really wrong with all of this. Like...why would _Baz_ willingly agree to spy on Simon for Agatha? Why would Baz care if Agatha was worried about Simon? And why would Baz push Simon to talk to Agatha?

     This doesn’t fit with anything he’s done in the past.

     “Penny? Earth to Penny.” Simon says leaning forward to get a closer look at me.

     I glance back down and see Baz staring in my direction again but this time he seems... _happier_? No...that doesn’t make any sense.

     “Hey!” Agatha says and sits down next to Simon.

     Baz’s gaze flicks to my right and then he looks back to his coach. There’s a frown on his face now. I look to my right and see Simon and Agatha. They’ve awkwardly exchanged smiles but I can tell they’ll be okay. Simon’s smile is brighter and Agatha’s shoulders are relaxed.

     Baz was searching for something...no...someone. And he’s found it.

     I look at Simon and Agatha and glance at Baz again.

     Baz is something more than he’s been letting on.

-

     “HELL YEAH!” Simon hollers as Watford scores a touchdown.

     It’s nearing halftime and Agatha, Simon, and I have settled into our usual routine. Simon is loud, rowdy, and proud. Agatha pulls Simon back down whenever he jumps up and almost tumbles onto the row below us. And I laugh at Simon’s jokes and help Agatha tease him whenever he says a bad pun.

     “I’m going to go to the snack bar. Do you guys want anything?” I ask.

     “Ooo, I’ll come with.” Simon says and jumps up.

     “I’ll stay and save our seats.” Agatha says.

     “Want anything?” I ask.

     She purses her lips in thought, “Sour Skittles.”

     “Cool, be right back.”

     “Ha! I doubt it with that line.” Agatha replies and points down to the snack bar. Simon and I look and groan.

     “Dammit.” Simon says but walks towards it anyways.

     I follow after him and we slowly make our way to the line. Trixie and her girlfriend are in front of us and I suppress the urge to gag.

     “What’s wrong?” Simon asks.

     I glance at them and Simon follows my gaze. He snorts.

     “Oh you’re horrible.” Simon laughs.

     “You have no idea how horrible it was rooming with them.” I hiss and he chuckles.

     “It can’t have been that bad.” Simon says rolling his eyes.

     For my first year of university, I lived in the dorms and roomed with Trixie. Which wouldn’t have been so bad if she hadn’t started dating her girlfriend and then proceeded to sexile me every other night.

     “They pushed our beds together Simon!” I mutter. “I don’t even want to know what went on in my bed.”

     That sends Simon laughing so hard he snorts twice.

     I can’t help but crack a smile.

     “H-hi, Simon.” Philippa Stainton stutters from behind us. We turn around and see Philippa smiling shyly. She looks up at Simon through her eyelashes.

     She doesn’t say hi to me.

     I roll my eyes and say, “Hey, Philippa.”

     She eyes me for a second and says a quick, “Oh, hey, Penny,” before she focuses her attention back on Simon.

     Simon flashes a polite smile at her.

     “Hi, Philippa.”

     “I haven’t seen you around in a while.” Philippa says.

     “Yeah,” Simon says scratching the back of his head. “Guess I’ve been pretty busy.”

     “What are you doing here?”

     “Getting snacks.” I say.

     “Oh, so um...Simon?” Philippa says nervously.

     “Yeah?” Simon asks shooting me a panicked look and then facing Philippa again.

     “I’ve been thinking…” She says and smiles flirtatiously. She throws her shoulders back and takes a step forward. “That maybe we should hang out sometime?”

     “Sure, if you want you can sit with us and Agatha.” Simon offers. I hide a snicker by turning to face the football field. It’s not Philippa’s fault that Simon’s not interested, and it’s not her fault that I don’t like her.

     “I meant alone.” She falters and I can hear her confidence plummeting.

     “Oh…” Simon says. “Like...like a date?”

     Philippa nods.

     “Er...uh...I don’t think I’m ready to go on dates, Philippa. I’m sorry, but I did just get out of a relationship with Agatha.”

     Philippa’s face falls and I feel bad for the poor girl.

     Her lip wobbles before she nods and runs away from the line.

     “I feel horrible.” Simon mutters.

     “Don’t.”

     “I should have just said yes.” Simon shakes his head.

     “No, you shouldn’t have.” I reply. “You would have been leading her on then.”

     “I guess you’re right.” Simon answers and let’s the subject drop.

     We eventually get to the front of the line and order. Simon gets a slice of pizza and coke, I get sour Skittles for Agatha and a slice of pizza for myself.

     We pass the bathrooms and I stop.

     “Hey, Simon? Will you hold my stuff while I go to the bathroom?”

     “Sure. Want me to wait for you?” He asks.

     “No, I’ll catch up.”

     He shrugs and goes on ahead. I push the door open to find a line of girls waiting.

     “Great…” I mutter.

     Minutes pass and girls come and go but something’s tugging on the back of my mind. Something’s not right.

     “Should I knock or something?” I hear a girl in front of me whisper to her friend.

     Her friend shrugs.

     I realize what’s wrong.

     Nobody’s come out of the corner stall yet. It’s locked but nobody’s come out since I’ve entered. I walk towards it and knock on the door.

     “Is anyone in there?” I ask.

     There’s no reply.

     “I’m coming in.”

     Still nothing.

     I glance at the other girls who all look bored. I push on the door but it won’t open. I glance down and I see a small pool of something dark. I can’t tell what it is because the lights are dull and the floor tile is black.

     Gross.

     I sigh and knock again just to make sure.

     No response.

     I shrug and push my weight against the door. It doesn’t budge but by now I really have to pee and I have no time for this. I take a few steps back and a deep breath before I run into the door with my shoulder and the door gives way.

     I stumble in and skid on the puddle.

     “Ah!” I gasp. I barely manage to catch myself on the disable railing.

     I straighten up and follow the puddle to its source.

     “Oh my God!” I scream and backpedal out of the stall.

     “What’s wrong?” The girl from before asks me.

     Philippa Stainton is dead.


	21. Baz

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As a brief disclaimer, this chapter is extra short. BUT, the next chapter is extra long so they'll balance each other out.  
> Also...I have no idea how football actually works so I was very vague. *shrugs*

21

**Baz**

     I knew it.

     I told myself not to get my hopes up because the Golden couple would get back together and everything would go back to normal. Still...it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Simon smile that brightly.

     Simon Snow is like a roaring fire that just keeps pulling you in and perpetually threatens to burn you alive.

     Not that I’d mind being consumed by him…

     “Pitch!” Coach Mac yells.

     “Yes, sir?”

     “Where the hell is your head today?” He asks.

     “In the game.” I lie.

     “It better be. Hogwarts matches us in speed and strength, we’ll need to outsmart them if we want to win.” Coach Mac bellows.

     “THAT’S MY NEPHEW!” I hear Fiona scream from the first row of the home side. I wince, Fiona is murdering my reputation right now. Niall snickers at my side.

     “What?” I ask.

     “Nothing.” He replies. He’s smirking at me.

     “That’s right. Fiona’s shouting because it’s her first game of the season. What’s your mother’s excuse?” I ask. Niall’s mum sits first row next to Fiona and is decked head to toe in Watford paraphernalia.

     Niall turns red and Dev snickers beside me. Niall mutters a, “Shut up.”

     I crack a smile.

     “Don’t tease if you can’t handle it, mate.” Dev says clapping his hand on Niall’s shoulder.

     “Yeah, yeah.” Niall says rolling his eyes. He smiles and looks at me with excitement. “You guys ready to show Hogwarts what a _real_ football team is like?”

     “Those poor, unfortunate souls.” I muse.

-

     “BAZ! THAT’S MY BOY!” I hear Fiona scream from the stands. It’s a true testament of how loud she’s being that I can hear her from the field. I spare a glance at her and she’s jumping from her seat.

     “TOUCHDOWN! Watford has scored a touchdown and pulls ahead of Hogwarts but it’s still a close match.” The announcer comments as our quarterback does his stupid dance. But even I can’t be cynical because _holy crap_ , we’re winning.

     “HELL YEAH!” I can just barely hear over the crowds’ cheers. I can’t help but grin because I can see Simon threaten to topple over if Penny and Agatha can’t hold him back. But Simon doesn’t care because he’s happy.

     I feel a twinge of guilt for preventing Simon from getting on the football team but the thought of constantly being around a sweaty, hetero Simon Snow was literal torture.

     ...And another part of me — the nicer part — was terrified that he’d get hurt on the field. I can’t protect him from his own stupidity and inherent ability to get involved in crime scenes, but to hell if I can’t stop him from getting injured on the field.

     The horn goes off to signal half-time and I walk over to the benches to get some water.

     “What the bloody hell?” Dev mutters and I glance up to look at him quizzically. He meets my gaze and silently points off to the bathrooms and then to the paramedics who are heading in that direction.

     They’re carrying a body bag.

     I glance up at the bleachers and Fiona’s staring at me with a grim expression. I look up a few feet and see Simon and Agatha exchange panicked glances. In a second they’re bounding down the stairs and running to the bathrooms.

     Where the _hell_ is Bunce?


	22. Simon

22

**Simon**

     I didn’t notice the change.

     At least, not at first. Not until Agatha straightened up and started gnawing at her bottom lip.

     “Agatha?” I ask. Is she feeling awkward now that it’s just the two of us?

     “Simon…” She breathes out; she doesn’t stop staring off to the distance. She reaches out for my knee and shakes it while pointing down below us. I follow the direction and my breath gets caught in my throat. Before each football game, our school has an ambulance stay on the sidelines of the football stadium in case a player gets hurt. There’s never more than two or three paramedics present.

     Two of them are following Mr. Davy with a body bag.

     “Where are they headed?” I ask.

     A second passes for us to follow the direction they’re heading in.

     “Penny.”

     We jump up and abandon the blanket.

     Agatha looks reluctant but determined and I think even if she hates this stuff, even if she complains about us getting caught up in crimes and danger, she’ll still rush to find out if we’re okay.

     I find that comforting.

     People are starting to notice. We need to hurry before there’s a crowd.

     “Professor Davy!” I shout running up to him. Agatha’s a few feet behind me. “What’s wrong?”

     Professor Davy glances down at me and looks relieved.

     “Simon!” He says. He looks me over and frowns before saying, “I’m afraid something terrible.”

     The paramedics are getting people out of the bathroom but keeping them close by for questioning.

     “Yes, I know. Stay until the police get here. I’m not an idiot. Stop it! I’m not in shock!”

     Penny is getting escorted out of the bathroom and one of the paramedics has given her an orange blanket. She’s puffing out her cheeks and rolling her eyes.

     “It’s not my first crime scene!” She gasps exasperatedly.

     The paramedic just looks at her in shock.

     “Penny!” Agatha sighs and rushes to her. Penny’s eyes widen when Agatha throws her arms around her and the two stumble back a few steps.

     “Thank, God, you’re alright.” I say hugging Penny when Agatha finally lets go.

     “Why wouldn’t I be?” She asks.

     “Because you’re attracted to trouble.” I reply.

     “I am not.” She says indignantly. She crosses her arms and frowns.

     “You’re friends with Simon for fuck’s sake and you say you aren’t.” Agatha says and shakes her head. I shrug because she’s got a point there.

     “What happened?” I ask.

     Penny looks down at her hands and opens her mouth but nothing comes out. She glances back at the bathrooms where Davy, the paramedics, and now the President of the school are. The campus police aren’t too far behind either. Penny looks guilty and conflicted.

     “What?” I ask.

     Eventually she says, “Philippa Stainton...she’s been murdered.”

     “Philippa?” Agatha gasps. Philippa was Agatha’s roommate freshman year.

     I stare at Penny hoping she’s joking.

     “Simon? Are you alright?” Penny asks watching me carefully. She chews her bottom lip and I know she instantly regrets telling me. But both of us know I would have found out sooner or later.

     The last thing I told Philippa Stainton was that I didn’t want to hang out with her.

     Oh God.

     My hands start shaking and I’m going to lose it.

     “Simon?” Penny says again and she takes a step forward with her arms out. She’s ready to hold me and say it’s not my fault but I can’t have it. I can’t hold it.

     I’m going to explode.

     I shake my head and sprint off.

     Philippa Stainton is dead.

     The last thing I told her was that I didn’t want to hang out with her.

     The last thing I did was make her cry.

     “Snow!”

     I don’t know where I’m going but I barrel my way there. I run into doors and I’m hit with the smell of chlorine. I’m in the aquatic center. There’s just enough moonlight seeping in through the windows to see the edge of the pool. I think I can hear the filters on because I can hear the water hit the sides of the pool over and over and over again.

     And I lose it.

     I let out a growl and then a scream. I can’t believe Philippa’s dead. She’s dead, dead, dead, _dead_. If I had said yes, she wouldn’t have ran off. She would have sat with Penny, Agatha, and me. She wouldn’t have been alone. She would still be alive.

     This is all my fault.

     When I’m upset, I run into things because it feels nice. It feels nice to focus on the sting of a desk’s edge or a sore shoulder from running into a wall instead of feeling but it _feels_ nicer to break things.

     There’s nothing around to break.

     I kick the wall and my foot howls in pain but it’s not enough. I pull back my hand and it’s already a fist, all I have to do is put my weight into it.

     There’s a satisfying _crunch_.

     “What the actual fuck, Snow?!”

     I frown and turn around to see Baz.

     His mouth is hanging open and I think it’s the first time I have ever seen him speechless.

     “Why the fuck are you here?” I ask narrowing my eyes. Is he here to rub salt in the wound? I bet he wants to drown me in the pool. I’ll let him.

     He snorts.

     “To swim.”

     I glare at him.

     “I’m _joking_.” He says. He strides to where I stand and that’s the thing with Baz. Tyrannus Basilton Grimm-Pitch doesn’t walk to places, he _strides_ like he owns the fucking place.

     “Sod off.” I growl taking a step back.

     “Why should I?”

     “Why are you even here?”

     “I saw an idiot barrel his way to the aquatic center. I had to do my civic duty and make sure he doesn’t drown himself.” He sneers. He takes a step forward.

     “Well aren’t you just a fine upstanding citizen.” I spit out. “Now can you piss off and leave me the fuck alone?”

     “Why? So you can go back to punching walls, Snow?” Baz asks tilting his head to the side like a cat. He was playing with me, the prat.

     “Shut up, Baz.” I growl.

     “It’s not healthy, you know, to run off punching walls every time you feel something.” He says.

     “I said,” I snap at him. I take a step forward and growl in his face, “Shut up.”

     Baz sizes me up for a moment before his eyes fall on my hand. It’s throbbing and wet and I think in need of medical attention.

     “You idiot, you’re bleeding.” He whispers softly.

     “Sad you didn’t cause it?” Something changes because Baz’s entire face twists and he’s suddenly very pissed.

     “You brainless numpty!” He snarls. “You can’t save everyone.”

     I take a step back startled by the sudden change in his attitude.

     He advances and says, “You think it’s your fault don’t you? _Don’t you_? You think it’s all your fault that poor little Philippa is dead.”

     “Don’t talk about her like that!” I hiss.

     “So you go off by yourself and to try to make up for it, you what? Mangle your hand? That’s your grand plan for all of this?”

     “You don’t know what you’re talking about!” I yell. I push him back and he’s taken by surprise. “You weren’t there.”

     “Then tell me, Snow.” He says.

     “Why do you even care?” I ask.

     He shrugs. He reeks with sweat and it’s mingling with the chlorine and I feel like gagging.

     “Humour me.”

     “This isn’t some joke!” I grunt and push him again, but he’s already at the edge of the pool and he has nowhere else to go. So he falls backwards. His eyes widen and he instinctively stretches out to grab something — anything to steady himself.

     He grabs my arm.

     And we both go down with a roaring splash.

     I immediately panic when the freezing water covers my head and I kick as hard as I can so I can break the surface. I gasp for breath and look around to find Baz staring at me with a worried expression. He looks ridiculous. Water is streaming down his pale cheeks and his grey eyes are being covered by thick strands of black hair.

     It’s like he’s directly out of a black and white movie.

     “I’m not treating it like one.” He says defensively.

     I scowl at him through my sopping wet curls.

     “Don’t you dare try to be angry at me because we're wet. This was your fault.” He says running a hand through his hair to get it out of his face. His face is flushed now and his jersey is clinging to his skin.

      I pull myself out of the pool and collapse on the edge. I can hear Baz climb out of the pool too and then his soggy footsteps. He stands awkwardly for a few seconds before he seems to make up his mind and sits down next to me.

     “Philippa died because of me.” I whisper. Baz’s eyes soften and I can’t take his pity. I look anywhere but his face.

     “Did you kill her?” He asks.

     “What? No.” I say.

     “Then she didn’t die because of you.” His voice is soft and rational. It's almost... _nice._

     “She asked me out right before she was murdered. I said no so she ran off crying. She was found in the bathroom so she was probably murdered in the bathroom. She wouldn’t have been in the bathrooms if I hadn’t made her cry...” I bluster and I can feel my throat start to swell up.

     I can feel him staring at me so I make a point to look at the floor.

     “You can’t save everyone, Simon.” He says.

     I glance at him.

     Did he just call me Simon?

     He sighs. “Listen, I know being the hero is kind of your thing, but you can’t just blame everything on yourself. You’ll go mad.”

     “But—”

     “But nothing. If you want someone to blame, blame the murderer.” He replies and it’s final. Like that’s that.

     “Why are you even here?” I ask.

     “We literally just went over this.” He frowns.

     “No, for real. Why are you here? Why are you being nice to me?” I ask finally meeting his gaze.

     He shrugs.

     “Maybe I’m tired of being the bad guy all the time.”


	23. Simon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I technically posted this on Saturday. It's just a few hours late.  
> *hangs head in shame*  
> The initial chapter I wrote wasn't working...like...at all. It was forced and awkward. So I took a few extra hours to rewrite it into something more natural. I mean...Simon was out in the cold, he has been stressed for a long time now, and now he's dealing with guilt. It only makes sense that he would get sick.

23

**Simon**

     My head hurts.

     I rub my eyes and roll over in bed trying to forget about the nightmare. My throat is sore and I feel hot so I throw off the covers. When I stand everything spins and I lean against the wall until my head straightens itself out.

     Baz isn’t in his bed.

     I glance at the clock and groan. It’s 11 AM and I have to hurry if I want to make it to my shift at Ebb’s. I glance at Baz’s bed again and squint like he’ll suddenly appear out of nowhere.

     I don’t understand him sometimes.

     Like yesterday he decided to be nice and I don’t know if I should be nice back. What if he’s trying to lull me so I don’t suspect him of anything?

     Oh God...yesterday.

     I fumble around until I find a clean white shirt and jeans. I shove my feet into my Chucks and grab my apron. I push my key card and wallet into my pockets before I leave. I stop by the cafeteria to pick up a breakfast burrito and then I’m sprinting to catch the bus.

     I sigh from relief when I slide into my seat.

-

_Maybe I’m tired of being the bad guy all the time_ …

     My eyes widened when he said that and he just frowned like he hadn’t meant to say it. He stood up and offered me a hand. I took it and scrambled to my feet.

     “You better go back to Bunce and Wellbelove before they send out a search party.”

     “Alright…” I sighed.

     He raised an eyebrow. “Not too keen on going?”

     Since he shared, I felt like it was only fair to share too.

     “Not really.” I shrugged. Baz tilted his head to the side.

     “Why?”

     I shrugged again. “Er...I guess I’ll see you at our dorm.”

     I left the aquatic center and headed back to the bathrooms. Penny was talking to an officer but when she caught sight of me, she brushed passed him.

     “Why are you wet?” She asked.

     “I was angry.” I replied. She raised her eyebrows and I said, “And then I fell in the pool.”

     “Simon!” Professor Davy said. He walked up to us and then looked at me with confusion. “Why are you all wet?”

     “I fell in the pool.” I said lamely.

     “Um...okay. I need to talk to you. Will you see me in my office?” He said. I nodded and followed after him. I made eye contact with Agatha and I could hear her ask Penny, “Why is Simon wet?”

     We pushed through the crowds until we entered the abandoned Humanities building. When we reached his office, he closed the door.

     “Simon, I need your help.”

     I didn’t know what to say.

     “Simon, this makes three deaths now by the same killer.” He said and leaned over his desk.

     “You think it’s by the same killer?” I asked.

     “Of course.” He said looking at me in surprise. “Have you not been keeping up with this?”

     I shook my head and he looked disappointed.

     “I thought you were.”

     “I’ve been preoccupied, sir.”

     “Doing what?” He asked.

     “Schoolwork.”

     “Yes, of course your schoolwork is important, Simon, but...these are people’s _lives_. Don’t you want to help?”

     I bit the inside of my cheek and nodded. Of course I wanted to help, but I made a promise.

     “I’m not a real cop though.”

     Professor Davy snorted.

     “When has that ever stopped you?” He leaned closer now and held my attention. “We are at war, Simon. There are horrible things happening in the world, horrible people out there in the world and we’re...we’re the only ones that can stop them. We chose Criminal Justice to fight against evil and to protect those who can’t protect themselves, Simon...are you going back on that now?”

     “No, sir.” I said.

     He smiled sadly.

     “Are you regretting your decision to save others?”

     “No, sir.” I repeated a little louder.

     “Are you going to sit back while another person gets murdered?”

     “No, sir!” I choked out through clenched teeth. Philippa’s face flashed before my eyes and I couldn’t just sit there and do nothing. Philippa died because of a sick bastard and I couldn’t just sit back while he ran free. Professor Davy was right. I had to do something.

     “If you mean that. If you truly want to save people, then you need to start studying the case files.” Professor Davy said and slid a fat manila folder over to me.

     “Where did you…?” I asked grabbing it.

     “You forget Simon, I only work at the university part time. My primary job is at the station and I have connections.”

     I gripped onto the folder so tightly my knuckles turned white.

     “Can I count on you to help?” He asked.

     “Yes, sir.”

-

     “Jesus, Simon!” Ebb cries out in surprise. I look up in confusion. It’s my break and I’ve just finished sticking a batch of cookies in the oven, frosted a few cakes, and stuck a cheesecake in the freezer. I’m exhausted and my breathing is coming out short. I think my apron is covered in flour and there might be some on my face too.

     “Hmm?” I say. I’m sitting at the break table with my head pressed on the cool surface. It feels nice.

     “Are you alright?” She asks and shuffles over to me quickly. She fusses over me until I’m standing before her and she’s touching my forehead.

     “You’re burning up!” She cries out.

     “S’fine.” I mumble shaking my head. It’s a mistake though because the world starts to spin.

     “No, you’re bloody well not.” She chides. Before I know it, she’s setting me down on the couch.

     “My break’s almost up, though.” I argue.

     “Don’t you even try. Stay there and I’ll come back with a glass of water and some medicine.” She says and rushes off.

     She comes back later with exactly that.

     “S’fine. Don’t need it.” I say.

     “Don’t test me.” She says and pushes the water and pills into my hand. I sit up and take them.

     “Take a nap. I’ll finish up the orders and then I am driving you home.” She says.

     “You don’t need to. I can take the bus.” I say and set the glass on the coffee table. I go to stand up and Ebb is there with a stern, motherly face.

     “Simon, do you want me to call Penny?” She warns and I immediately sit back down. Penny is already overprotective of me since the shootout, if she knew I was sick she wouldn't leave my side.

     “No.” I say.

     “Thought so.” She says smugly.

     I’m asleep before I hit the decorative couch pillow.

-

     I think Ebb carried me to the car because I have no idea how I get in the back seat. I try to lift my head and see that the sun has already set.

     I drift back to sleep.

     “Hey, are you Simon’s roommate?” I hear Ebb say.

     There’s a muffled sound and I think she’s on the phone.

     “This is Ebb, I’m Simon’s boss.”

     A pause.

     “No...no...he’s fine. I’m just bringing him home but I can’t get in your building. Could you come down and help me get him up there?”

     Another pause.

     “Thanks. I’ll be waiting out in Lot 3.”

     I’m too tired to question anything right now. I can’t even open my eyes.

     “Hello, I’m Baz.” I hear.

     “It’s nice to finally meet you.” Ebb says. “Oh, he talks about you all the time.”

     “...Does he now?”

     “Yep, goes on and on. Anyways, he came to work today and he seemed a bit off at first but I thought he might have had another all nighter or something. You know how you kids run yourselves out studying, so I didn’t question it until I found him in the break room redder than a tomato. Poor lad was burning up.”

     “He’s ill?”

     “Very. I managed to give him some medicine to take the edge off but I think he needs more attention than that. Will you take care of him?”

     I can’t hear Baz’s answer.

-

     The sun hits my face and I groan.

     My head still hurts but it’s not threatening to explode so I’ll manage. I turn to my side and face the wall. I open my eyes and try to remember how I got in bed when I could swear I was just at Ebb’s bakery.

     “Are you alive?”

     I jump. I roll back to face the rest of the room and see Baz sitting on his bed with his head against the wall. He’s eyeing me but I can’t read the expression on his face.

     “What time is it?” I croak out. My throat is dry and aches. Baz points to the water bottles lining my side of the room and I pick one up. I down half a bottle before repeating, “What time is it?”

     “About 2.” He says.

     “In the morning?” I ask scrunching up my face.

     He rolls his eyes. “In the afternoon.”

     “What?!” I sit up and my head rushes.

     “Careful, Snow. You’re running a fever. Not as bad as last night, though. You’re damn lucky it broke. You should be on your way to a delightful recovery.” Baz says and I can’t stop looking at him because _what is he talking about_?

     “Has the fever fried your brain?” He asks but his tone is mild. “What do you remember?”

     I take a few moments to think.

     “I woke up late...feeling kinda shitty. But I had work so I ran to catch the bus and then...I...was on break when Ebb made me lie down.” I reply.

     Baz looks amused.

     “Ebb drove you home, didn’t have a key though so I guess you left yours back at work. She phoned me so I could help get you up here.”

     I turn red at the thought of having Ebb and Baz carry me up to my room.

     “Wait a minute…” I say. “How did she get your number?”

     “You don’t have a password on your phone.” He says and tosses me my phone.

     I start to sputter, “D-did you go through my phone?!”

     Baz rolls his eyes but he still looks amused. “Why would I bother going through your phone?”

     I narrow my eyes at him so he holds up his right hand.

     “Scout’s honor.”

     I groan and fall back on my bed. I pull the sheets up to my chin and then something occurs to me.

     “Aren’t you supposed to be at football practice?”

     Baz shrugs.


	24. Baz

24

**Baz**

     Simon is burning up.

     I hover over him and try to gauge how bad this is. _Get a grip, Basilton. If he opens his eyes then he’ll see you creeping on him_.

      _Not creeping, just concerned_.

      _But you shouldn’t be concerned. Merlin, help me if my parents knew I was worried over Snow…_

     I take out my phone and dial.

     “Yellow?” Fiona answers and my lip curls up in disgust. I roll my eyes at her response and focus on the task at hand.

     “Fiona! I have a question.” I say evenly.

     “What’s wrong?” She immediately asks.

     “Nothing.” I reply.

     “Uh huh…” She says and I can practically hear her narrow her eyes.

     “Just curious on how you’d go about treating a fever.” I say.

     “Are you sick?” She asks quickly and I crack a smile. If I were, Fiona would raise hell to get me better.

     “No, just asking for a friend.” I say glancing down at Snow.

     “Is Niall ill again?” She asks and I grin at the easy opportunity.

     “Yeah.”

     “That boy has no immune system, I swear…”

     “What’s the old adage? Feed a fever, starve a cold?”

     “It’s ‘Feed a cold, starve a fever’ but you should really just focus on making sure he gets plenty of rest and fluids. If the fever rises above 102 degrees Fahrenheit then he should take some aspirin or Advil.” She says.

     “Alright. Thanks, Fiona.”

     “No problem. I’ll see you Monday for our uh...thing.”

     I hang up and grab my coat.

     When I get back, I line Simon’s side with water bottles and a bottle of aspirin in case he needs some. Snow is barely moving so I can tell he’s really out of it. Usually he tosses and turns but right now he’s just knotted up and flushed red. There’s some sweat collecting on his forehead and I frown because there’s nothing I can really do about it.

     I crack open my textbook to try to make up for not studying enough on Saturday but I end up rereading the same paragraph over and over again. It’s not long before my mind wanders to what I have to do on Monday with Fiona and then my mother’s death anniversary slips into the forefront of my thoughts. I jump up shaking my head. I spare a glance at Snow; he doesn’t look like he’ll wake up anytime soon so I grab my jacket and head out.

     I end up driving into town and the sounds of cars and people help push the thoughts out of my head. I’m stopped at a red light when the scent of freshly baked cookies comes wafting into my car’s open window. My mouth waters and it’s too much to pass up so I take a U-turn and pull into a bakery’s parking lot.

     I walk in and the smell of fresh dough and chocolate hits me. It’s quaint and cute but the owner seems to be fond of goats because there are little statues on shelves. The woman who dropped off Snow turns around and she beams at me.

     “Hiya, Baz!” She chirps.

     “Hello.” I reply warmly, the prospect of cookies is doing wonders for my attitude.

     “How’s poor Simon?” She asks leaning on the counter and I glance down at her name tag. Ebb.

     “He’s resting. His fever seems to have broken though, so he should be getting better soon.” I say and eye the snickerdoodles.

     “That’s great!” Ebb exclaims. “That poor boy works too hard and pushes himself too far. I hope he realizes he needs a break every once and awhile now that he’s forced to rest.”

     My eyes fall on some sour cherry scones.

     “What brings you in?” Ebb asks.

     “Uh…” I clear my throat. “The smell of cookies.” I admit glancing back down to the glass display case.

     “Oh!” Ebb lights up. “Which ones would you like?”

     I survey the options. Surely I worked hard enough to splurge on pastries.

     “I’d like four snickerdoodles.” I say pointing to them. Dev and Niall are just as obsessed with them as I am and I bet they’ll be floored if I bring the lads some.

     “Brilliant choice, they’re a favorite around here.” Ebb smiles and brings out a set of tongs to use.

     I find some lemon bars that look amazing and I order four of those as well.

     “Will that be all?” Ebb asks when I hesitate to order something else.

     My eyes fall back onto the sour cherry scones.

     “Those are his favorite you know.”

     I raise an eyebrow and meet Ebb’s gaze.

     “Are they?”

     She nods. “He always eats half a batch before we can even get them on display but I don’t mind really. Simon’s a good boy and I think the lad’s gone through a lot to not deserve scones.” Her eyes get misty and I’m afraid she’s going to start crying.

     “That can’t be good for business.” I remark.

     She laughs. “No, I don’t suppose it is. But you know what?” She asks and leans forward again. “I think they’re one of his favorites.”

     “You already said that though…” I say confused.

     “No,” She shakes her head. “I mean... _period_. Like...favorite thing in his life. He always gets the biggest smile when he eats one. It’s so cute although I do worry about his health.” She frowns for a second and gives me a look. “He eats them with huge slabs of butter when they’re right out of the oven. Can’t be good for his heart.”

     I stare down at the sour cherry scones.

     “I’ll take half a dozen.”

     Ebb gives me a smirk and I shoot her a confused look. She shakes her head but the smirk doesn’t leave her face except...the word doesn’t really describe the smile she’s giving me. She’s not smug about it, I don’t think she _could_ be smug. It’s more...pleased.

     I say my goodbye and drive back home.

     My phone rings when I kick my shoes off. I shrug out of my jacket and toss it on its hook before answering. I glance at Snow to make sure my phone didn’t wake him.

     “Hello?” I ask.

     “Baz, where the hell are you?” Dev asks.

     “What do you mean?” I say.

     “Mate, you’re late to practice.” Niall’s voice floats through.

     I take a peek at my wristwatch.

     They’re not wrong.

     “Coach Mac wants to know where the hell you are.” Dev says. I can hear Coach Mac in the background screaming about drills.

     I spin on my heel and look down at the sleeping knot of a boy in the corner of our room. He could possibly get worse and I couldn’t have him dying in our room.

-

     “Aren’t you supposed to be at football practice?” Snow asks. His cheeks are still flushed red and his curls are damp from sweat and clinging to his forehead yet he still chooses to pull the blankets up to his chin.

     This boy will be the end of me.

     I shrug.

     He stares at me with a frown on his face and I remember the scones.

     I get up and walk to my desk, on it are the sour cherry scones I bought from Ebb. I pick up the box and drop it in front of Snow.

     He startles and glances down at the box as if it’s going to bite him.

     “I don’t want them anymore.” I lie. “I’m too full.”

     My face is on fire so I grab my bag and stalk out the room because the library seems like a good place to hide from Snow.


	25. Simon

25

**Simon**

     I don’t know how to tell Penny that I’m getting involved with the homicide cases. But I know she isn’t going to be happy.

     The fat manilla folder sits in front of me on my desk and I’m almost afraid to open it up...almost. It’s not like I’m going back on my vow to protect others...it was just...nice to act like a normal kid for once. To take a break from all the pressure.

_      ...To fight against evil and protect those who can’t protect themselves… _

     I sigh and open up the folder. I pick up the first photo from the first victim. Initially, she was a Jane Doe until they broadcasted a description of her and her family reported her missing only to identify her later that day. She was young, early twenties and from all accounts a good person. She volunteered at soup kitchens when she could, sang in her church choir, and was attending a local community college. I frown at the picture and feel a black knot form in my stomach. This shouldn’t have happened.

     Madison Turner was dead, her neck snapped broken.

     No leads, no witnesses, no clues.

     I push her papers aside and gasp at the second victim’s photo. He was my bus driver. I noticed that he had been replaced but I thought he quit or something. James Whitman, 47, a high school dropout but clean record. He was found on his bus, died from suffocation but the murder weapon wasn’t on the scene.

     No leads, no witnesses, no clues.

     I ignore the last couple of pages.

     There are no known connections between any of the three victims. They were different ages, worked different jobs, hung out with different people.

     How am I supposed to solve a case with no leads?

     “Simon! I know you’re in there!” Penny shouts and I jump in my seat. She pounds on my door and says, “Why are you ignoring my texts?”

     I open my desk drawer and push all the case papers in it before slamming it shut. I whirl around in a circle searching for anything out of the ordinary before opening the door.

     “Break the door why don’t you?” I say.

     “You haven’t been answering your phone.” She says and places her hands on her hips. I roll my eyes and move aside to let her in.

     “Sorry, it’s on silent. I didn’t know you sent me texts.”

     “Ooh, what’s that?” Penny asks and I turn to see her pointing at the take out box that Baz gave me. I wasn’t going to eat the scones, afterall...Baz gave them to me, who knows what he did to them? But they were my favorite and I decided to compromise and only eat half of them.

     She lifts the lid and chuckles.

     “Should’ve known they were your favorite.” She swipes one and pops it into her mouth.

     “You might not want to eat those.” I say too late.

     Penny freezes and looks at me worriedly.

     “Why?”

     “They’re from Baz.”

     Her eyes narrow and she nearly chokes on the scone.

     “ _ What?! _ ” She says and a chunk of scone flies out. We both see it. Penny turns red; I laugh.

     “Baz gave me them. Who knows, maybe he’s poisoned them.”

     “And you let me eat one?!” Penny squeaks.

     “Don’t worry, I already ate like half of them yesterday. They’re probably not poisonous and if they are at least we’ll die together.”

     “My mom’s going to be so pissed at our joint funeral.”

     “We’re having a joint funeral?” I ask.

     “Of course. It’s cheaper.” Penny sighs in a  _ duh _ tone. She falls silent for a second before her eyes flash with a strange look and she goes, “Why did Baz give you scones?”

     “I don’t know. He just said he was too full and didn’t want them anymore.” I say and shrug.

     “Uh huh...what happened earlier that day?” Penny says. She crosses her arms but I don’t know how what happened earlier is relevant to scone giving.

     I shrug.

     “I was asleep for most of it.”

     She narrows her eyes again but lets it drop.


	26. Baz

26

**Baz**

     Monday is upon me and so is the stupid mission Fiona insists on doing.

     Ugh.

     I tap my feet on the tile floor. The Humanities building is filled with people milling to their next class and Professor Davy should be leaving the classroom any minute now to teach his Police Ethics and Civil Liabilities class. The only problem is that our opportunity to get this over with is staring us right in the face and a certain person with stupid doc Martens is nowhere to be seen.

     I lean against the wall and try to look as disconnected as possible, not at all like I’m about to break into a professor’s office and steal something. And then something occurs to me. What if Professor Davy locks his classroom when he’s not in there? I mean...a majority of professors do that anyways and why should Davy be any different?

     I groan inwardly, Fiona never thinks these things through and then I have to pick up the slack.

     If she wasn’t badass and my blood, I wouldn’t be so forgiving.

     Fiona wasn’t always such an anarchist.

     She used to respect authority. She used to study abroad in China as a chemist for pharmaceutical drugs. She used to dress normally and then my mother died.

     Burned alive in a fire.

     When my dad called her to tell her, Fiona dropped everything and took the next plane back home so we could grieve together. She stayed with us long enough to get our footing and then moved out to London with family money. She picks up odd jobs here and there as an artist or a freelance writer but it’s just so she has something to do. She mostly uses her time now to “fight the man” but doesn’t know which man.

     We all lost a part of ourselves in that fire, not just mom.

     I glare at the lights and focus on my breathing.

     The halls are emptying now and I catch sight of Davy leaving his office through the crowd. He picks up his briefcase, looks around, and then disappears around the corner to his class across the building.

     “Baz,” Fiona whispers and I feel my heart jump out of my skin. I whirl around to find her grinning but it doesn’t reach her eyes.

     “Jesus, Fiona. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?”

     She rolls her eyes. “You’re young and virile, you’ll survive.”

     I give her a frown but she just ruffles my hair. I groan and immediately reach up to fix it, my hair is one of my strong suits and here she is screwing it up. When I look back down at her, she’s glancing at the ceiling for any security cameras. There aren’t any in this building since it’s so old, so it makes our jobs easy.

     We walk through the dissipating crowd and cast one look in both directions before twisting the handle. It’s locked. I fucking knew it.

     “What do we do now?” I hiss and lean against the wall. I cast a quick look around us.

     “I came prepared, my boy.” She grins and slips out a rolled up piece of cloth. She takes two metal sticks out that I know I’ve seen used before on Supernatural. Fiona owns a lock picking kit. Of course, she owns a lock picking kit.

     “Where on earth did you even get that?” I ask.

     “One of my exes left it at my flat.” She says.

     “Where did _he_ get it?” I ask. Fiona’s taste in men is tragic.

     She gives me a wicked grin before I hear the lock click. “Amazon.”

     And then we’re slipping into the office. No one even notices.

     I haven’t been in here since the fire and everything hits me like a truck. The bookcases seem like they haven’t even been touched since my mom; they’re still filled with all of her linguistics books. I take a step closer and I can hear a sniffle behind me. I turn around and see Fiona’s eyes bright with tears, her hand is to her mouth like she’s holding in a cry.

     “Tasha…” She breathes out and it’s a delicate thing like the wings of a bird. She reaches out a shaky hand and touches the nearest bookshelf and she breaks.

     I’ve only ever seen my aunt cry once before, and that was when she dropped her bags at our doorstep to throw herself at my father and me. When our loss was still fresh, when it was still unbelievable, when it was still a nightmare we were waiting to wake up from.

     She tries her best to be quiet about it but little whimpers escape. It takes me a moment to recuperate from the shock but then I’m there and I’m holding her against my chest and she’s sobbing into my shoulder. I squeeze her tight and she hiccups.

     “I miss her too, Fiona. I miss her too.” I whisper and that sends her on another round of tears. I close my eyes and give myself this moment to just...feel.

     I can hear her trying to get her breathing under control and after a few minutes she lets me go and takes a step back. She nods and wipes at her eyes with her sleeves.

     “Okay...I’m okay.” She mumbles. Fiona runs a hand through her hair and throws her shoulders back with a sense of finality. “Tasha wouldn’t want me to cry,” she says and she grabs one of my hands in hers and lifts her other hand to my face. “And she wouldn’t want you to either.” Fiona slides her thumb under my eye and I wipe at my other one.

     “Natasha would never want to see her little puff’s eyes red rimmed.” Fiona says with a small smile, this one does reach her eyes.

     Before I can reply, she spins on her heel and rummages through the office looking for something. I take my time browsing my mother’s books, it looks like Davy didn’t even bother with redecorating. The only thing that looks remotely used is the desk at the center of the office and the computer that sits on it.

     “Okay,” Fiona says. I turn around and raise an eyebrow. She shows me what she picked and I can’t help but smile. My mother’s favorite book, _1984_ , is in Fiona’s hands. She had like a million copies of it and it always irritated my father because it just took space away from newer books but he would never say anything because of the look on her face when she brought home a new edition. This particular book looks like it’s gone through literal hell. The cover is bent back, multiple pages are dog-eared, there’s highlighted passages on every page, and sticky notes line the edges with sloppy annotations.

     “Ready?” Fiona asks.

     “Not yet…” I say. “You go on ahead, I think I want to stay a little while longer.”

     She throws her arms around me and kisses my cheek.

     “Don’t get caught.”

     “Love you too.”

     I watch her as she goes and I hope she doesn’t cry tonight but I know she will.


	27. Simon

27

**Simon**

     Penny doesn’t leave until an hour later. She dropped the Baz thing but she never stopped glancing at me like she knew something I didn’t. But then again...Penny generally knows things I don’t so I don’t really question it.

     “Simon, you’d tell me if you were in trouble or...if you were up to something, yeah?” Penny asks when she throws her feet over the edge of Baz’s bed. (Baz is going to be so pissed when he finds out that she was in it.)

     I look at her and she tries her best to look nonchalant but her shoulders are tense and she won’t make eye contact with me.

     Oh God...she knows.

     “Of course.” I blurt out and I realize my mistake. Penny narrows her eyes at me again and I turn pink because blurting things out nervously is an obvious sign that you’re hiding something. That was one of the first things I learned in my first criminal justice class for at risk youths and here I am...doing it. Penny tries to make eye contact with me but I glance at the box of cherry scones instead. She follows my gaze and opens her mouth but then closes it.

     Penny knows.

     Penny knows that I took up the homicide case and she’s going to be so mad at me and then we’re going to get into a fight and she might not want to talk to me because I promised that I would stay out of trouble and she —

     “—Simon, you know I love you right?” Penny says and I look at her startled.

     “Er...yeah. Why?”

     “Just...you can talk to me. About anything.” She says earnestly. She grabs my hand and holds it between us for a moment.

     “I know.” I say and give her hand a squeeze.

     Penny clears her throat and goes, “Well...I guess I should be off now.”

     “You have a test, yeah?” I ask.

     “Yep. Math.” Penny says and almost as an afterthought goes, “Bleh.”

     We look at each other and then Penny goes, “Got to go.”

     I don’t know if I should be worried or not.

-

     The case is getting on my nerves.

     I have nothing solid I can attack. There are no bad guys to punch and there aren’t any clues to follow so I can find the bad guys to punch.

     I sigh and push back the file in disgust.

_      Solving crimes isn’t all about fighting people, Simon _ . Penny would say.  _ There’s a lot of waiting and legal procedures you have to go through. Sometimes, you’ll even get yourself sued for punching the bad guy. _

_      That _ was the part I hated. The waiting. But there’s nothing you can do about that. 

     But maybe Professor Davy has something else that might help me. Some paper he forgot to include in the file or some details he heard at the station. At this point, I would accept anything so I stuff the papers back in the file and shove it in my desk drawer before leaving the room. Professor Davy should be getting out of class right about now and I might even catch him on the way there.

     I don’t see him on my way there but I try the doorknob and it’s not locked so he must be in.

     I push the door open and hear a: “Shit.”

     My head snaps up and I see Baz in the office.

     Not just that...I see a  _ crying _ Baz in the office.

     What the  _ hell _ is going on?

     I freeze and Baz whispers, “Close the bloody door!” I freak out and do as he says because Baz is  _ crying _ . He’s really crying. I haven’t seen Baz cry...ever. I didn’t even know he could cry. I thought Baz was just too cool to.

     Baz is furiously wiping his tears away with one hand while the other is holding a book.

     “What are you doing in Professor Davy’s office?” I ask and narrow my eyes. This could all be a trick to get out of being questioned. It nearly worked too, but Professor Davy never leaves his door unlocked and Baz doesn’t have any classes with Davy so there’s no reason he should be in there. He must be stealing something.

     Baz lets out a choked laugh and it’s a gross, broken thing.

     “Really, Snow?”

     I take a defensive position. “What are you stealing from Davy’s office?”

     Baz looks down at the book like he’s forgotten about it. He frowns and says, “I’m not stealing anything.”

     He looks back up at me and his eyes are red and puffy. Even after crying, Baz still looks put together without a hair out of place.

     Typical.

     I scoff. “Yeah right.”

     Baz puts his hand behind his back and the book goes with it.

     “Yeah, I’m right. Anyways, if you’ll excuse me,” Baz tries to step past me but I block him and we stand chest to chest. “Move it, Snow.” He says.

     “No.”

     “I said:  _ Move _ .” Baz snarls and his teeth gleam a ghostly white and I think of those old black and white vampire movies.

     “Make me.” I say and stand my ground. I square up my shoulders to show I mean business.

     Baz’s face scrunches up and a low sound starts at the back of his throat. Fuck. I think he’s actually growling at me.

     “You little—” Baz starts to say and he takes a step back. I use the opportunity to grab the book while he’s off guard and he lets out a surprised yelp. “Hey!”

     “Ha!” I say and hold the book close to my chest. “What were you trying to steal anyways?”

     Baz’s shoulders slump and he looks at the shelves to my right instead.

     I read the title and my nose scrunches up.

_      A History of the Chicano Dialect _ .

     What.

     Professor Davy wouldn’t own this.

     I flip through the pages and something falls out of the book. Baz gets a pained face before it’s gone and replaced with a mask of indifference. I pick it up and turn it over.

     It’s a photograph.

     A photograph of a woman who looks too much like Baz and a small chubby boy in dungarees who looks nothing like Baz. On the back it reads:  Puff’s 5th birthday.

     “Who...who is this?”

     Baz holds his hand out for the photo and I give it to him.

     “It’s none of your business.” He pushes past me and I don’t try to stop him this time.

     The door slams on his way out.


End file.
